Aplicación de los nuevos criterios de prescripción inadecuada STOPP-START a pacientes geriátricos institucionalizados

Abstract

ObjectiveThis study has aimed to determine the prevalence of inappropriate prescribing (IP) and of necessary drugs not prescribed in a geriatric population living in four assisted care nursing homes and to quantify the changes in medications made by physicians based on the recommendations made by the pharmacists. MethodsA pre-post quasi-experimental study without a control group was performed. The intervention consisted of the communication of inappropriate prescriptions based on the STOPP-START criteria to the responsible physicians ResultsThe medical records of 121 patients over 65 year were reviewed. Of these, 88 patients (72.7%) had at least one STOPP-START criterion, with an average of 2 criteria per patient. At least one potential inappropriate drug (STOPP criterion) was detected in 79 patients (65.3%) and 36 patients (29.7%) were not receiving at least one drug indicated for their diseases (START criterion). The practitioners accepted at least one of the criteria detected and modified the medical prescription of 47 patients (53.4%). Treatment was modified in 33 patients (41.8%) following the STOPP criteria and 20 patients (55.5%) following the START criteria. ConclusionInappropriate drug prescription and the lack of using of the necessary medications is a frequent problem in older patients.