Drug Related Problems in Geriatric Patients with Inappropriate Medication Use

Abstract

Drug related problem (DRP) is an event or circumstance involving drug therapy that actually or potentially interferes with desired health outcomes. Nowadays geriatric patients are at high risk of DRPs due to polypharmacy and altered physiology or due to older patients cannot manage their medication. DRPs also could arise from age related chronic diseases. The DRPs following hospital discharged cases also increased in elder people with chronic disease. Geriatric patients faces DRPs include inappropriate use of medication, polypharmacy, noncompliance, ADRs, drug–drug interaction, etc. Geriatric patients require more care because DRPs sometimes leads to hospital admission days, cost of the medication, increased morbidity rate and reduce the quality of life etc. So these category people need special consideration while selecting the drug therapy and its pattern. Like other health care services this special category of patients’ needs good care or services from a team of health care professionals including clinical pharmacists. This review article aims to understand the risk factors and different types of DRPs that are facing by the elderly people due to inappropriate medication use and pharmaceutical care by clinical pharmacists. Keywords: Geriatric patients, Polypharmacy, Non-compliance, and Drug related problems.