Table 2 Reason for and characteristics of switching
|  | Total N(748) | 4 mg N(226) | 8 mg N(509) | <65 yr. N(418) | ≥65 yr. N(330) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Driven treatment change, % | Â | Â | Â | Â | Â |
 Patient request | 24.8 | 29.8 | 21.7 | 24.7 | 24.9 |
 Investigator decision | 75.2 | 70.2 | 78.3§ | 75.3 | 75.1 |
Principal reason for switching, % | Â | Â | Â | Â | Â |
 Lack of effectiveness | 66.8 | 58.0 | 70.9§ | 67.0 | 66.7 |
 Side-effects | 18.4 | 23.5 | 16.1 | 17.0 | 20.3 |
 Bad compliance | 6.1 | 8 | 5.3 | 7.2 | 4.8 |
 Others | 8.5 | 10.5 | 7.7 | 8.9 | 8.2 |
Treatment length‡, mean (SD), d. | 66.2(36.2) | 60.1(34.8) | 68.8(36.7)§ | 63.8(36.1) | 69.2(36.2)§ |
Treatment compliance £, % | 31.0 | 24.9 | 33.5§ | 31.6 | 30.3 |