Boehringer Ingelheim drug among UK’s top prescribed in 2014

Boehringer Ingelheim's drug Spiriva was one of the most commonly prescribed drugs by the NHS during 2014, a new report reveals.

The latest Prescription Cost Analysis from the Health and Social Care Information Centre shows that there was a three percent increase in spend on drugs by the health service last year in comparison to 2013, with almost 150 million pounds spent on Spiriva alone.

Also among the frequently prescribed drugs were GlaxoSmithKline's Seretide and AstraZeneca's Symbicort, both of which amassed sales of over 100 million pounds each.

Looking at the data in relation to specific illnesses, it can be seen that medication for respiratory diseases, cardiovascular problems and diabetes were among the most commonly prescribed treatments by the NHS.

In addition, painkillers, asthma inhalers, antidepressants and antibiotics all featured highly on the list's top 20 most prescribed drugs.

These figures are in line with statistics showing that diagnoses for diabetes and depression are on the rise, while they also raise concerns regarding the overuse of antibiotics.