Brand-name drugs used to treat heart disease aren’t better than generics, a new analysis shows. Generic drugs have the same active ingredient as their brand-name counterparts, but the advantage is that they are often much cheaper.

The study, published today in the Journal of the American Medical Association, was aimed at addressing the question if generic versions of such drugs as beta-blockers, diuretics, calcium-channel blockers, antiplatelet agents, statins, ACE inhibitors and alpha-blockers are somehow different than brand-name drugs. The study was conducted by doctors at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston including Aaron Kesselheim, MD, JD, MPH.

They analyzed data from 47 studies, published between January 1984 and August 2008, of generic and brand-name cardiovascular drugs, including beta-blockers, statins, calcium channel blockers, diuretics, and warfarin.

The study found no evidence that the brand-name drugs were superior to the generic drugs. The majority of the studies found generic and brand-name drugs are equivalent.

“We found no evidence that a brand-name drug is clinically superior,” said the authors, led by Aaron S. Kesselheim, of the Harvard- affiliated Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston.

But researchers also read 43 editorials and commentaries published between January 1984 and August 2008 and found that slightly more than a half of those papers expressed negative ideas about switching to generic drugs.

“There are a number of studies out there saying that generic drugs should be an important part of a physicians prescribing treatment, that they're able to reduce costs and improve patient adherence which can lead to better patient outcomes,” said Dr. Aaron S. Kesselheim, lead author of the study.

The study authors suggested that some concern may have come from financial ties to drug companies, or from anecdotal experience. Anecdotes that have appeared in the press have raised doubts about the efficacy and safety of certain generic dugs. The researchers say that popular media and scientific journals should be more selective about publishing papers based on anecdotal evidence of diminished clinical efficacy or greater risk of adverse effects with generic medications.

Furthermore, the Food and Drug Administration has approved all generic drugs and certifies that they are bioequivalent, the authors write.

The study was supported by the Attorney General Prescriber and Consumer Education Grant Program.

Generic drugs account for 65 per cent of all prescriptions dispensed in the U.S., according to IMS Health. They cost anywhere between 30 to 80 percent less than their brand-name counterparts.

The Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America, a Washington-based trade group representing brand-name drug companies, issued a statement saying the group supports “patients receiving the medicines that are best for them, including both brand-name medicines and generic drugs.” “Without today’s innovative brand-name drugs to legally copy, there would be no generic drug industry,” said Ken Johnson, senior vice president of the Washington-based trade group.