Birinci basamakta yaşlılarda çoklu ilaç kullanımı: Bir kırsal alan örneği

Abstract

Objective: It can be said that the risk of polypharmacy and inappropriate drug use is high in primary care and this situation is mostly applied in elderly patients. Our aim in this study; determining the use of multiple drugs in the elderly and determining the prevention that should be taken according to the results of the study. Material and Method: The study is a cross-sectional descriptive type and the research population covers patients aged 65 years and older who applied to the Family Medicine Polyclinic of Karaman Sariveliler District Integrated Hospital between 15.11.2013 and 15.02.2014. A total of 310 patients aged 65 years and over who received oral informed consent and who were admitted to the study with a complaint of illness or complaints were included in the study. The remaining 10 patients were excluded from the study. Results: 300 patients (169 female (56.3%) and 131 male (43.7%) were included in the study. The mean age of the patients was 73.05 ± 6.20. 58.3% (n: 174) patients 4 and over use the drug. The most commonly used medication group is the cardiovascular system drugs with 72.7% (n: 218). Sociodemographic characteristics were compared with the number of drugs and there was a significant difference between the sexes (p = 0.040). It is observed that women use more drugs than men. Conclusion: Family physicians responsible for primary care need to be careful about the use of multiple drugs and especially the drugs that may be involved in the evaluation of their patients.