National trends in hydroxyurea and opioid prescribing for sickle cell disease by office-based physicians in the United States, 1997-2017.

Purpose: To identify trends in physician drug prescribing practices for sickle cell disease (SCD).

Methods: We used data from the National Disease and Therapeutic Index to evaluate medications prescribed to children (definition: aged 19 years or younger) and adults (20 years or older) with SCD by office-based physicians in the United States during 1997 to 2017. Prescriptions were evaluated in 3-year intervals.