Top Prescribed Products in 2004 Include Six Generic Drugs

Generic painkiller hydrocodone (with APAP) was the most frequently prescribed drug in the U.S. last year -- one of six generic drugs to crack NDCHealth's top 10 list of pharmaceutical products.

Physicians in the U.S. issued an estimated 92.7 million prescriptions for hydrocodone in 2004, making the drug the No. 1 retail pharmaceutical product by total prescription count, according to NDCHealth, a leading information solutions company serving all sectors of the healthcare industry.

The company's product rankings, which are based on proprietary methodologies, reflect prescription data for retail and mail-order pharmacy channels.

Other generic drugs ranking in NDCHealth's top 10 were hypertension treatments lisinopril and atenolol; antibiotic amoxicillin; and water retention/hypertension treatments hydrochlorothiazide and furosemide.

Pfizer's Lipitor (atorvastatin calcium) was the top prescribed brand drug in 2004, with an estimated 69.8 million prescriptions, NDCHealth said. Pfizer's Zithromax (azithromycin) was also among the top prescribed drugs last year.

To view NDCHealth's rankings, go to http://www.ndchealth.com/ (http://www.ndchealth.com/).