Abstract
BackgroundOlder patients are commonly prescribed multiple medications therefore; medication misadventures are common and expected among older patients. The use of potentially inappropriate medicines (PIMs) further contributes to this risk. Therefore, this study aimed to examine PIMs use among older patients using the 2015 Beers criteria.MethodsA cross-sectional retrospective study using electronic medical records data from a large tertiary hospital in Saudi Arabia was conducted. Older adult patient’s (age ≥ 65 years) who were treated in the ambulatory care setting were included. PIMs use was defined using the 2015 Beers criteria. Descriptive statistics and logistic regression were used to describe and identify potential predictors of PIMs use. All statistical analyses were carried out using the Statistical Analysis Software version 9.2 (SAS® 9.2).ResultsThis study included 4073 older adults with a mean age of 72.6 (± 6.2) years. The majority of the study population was female (56.8%). The Prevalence of PIMs to be avoided among older adults was 57.6% where 39.9% of the older adults population were prescribed one PIMs, 14.5% two PIMs, and 3.3% were on three or more PIMs. The most commonly prescribed PIMs were gastrointestinal agents (35.6%) and endocrine agents (34.3%). The prevalence of PIMs to be used with caution was 37.5%. Polypharmacy and existence of certain chronic comorbidities were associated with high risk of PIMs use among older patients.ConclusionsGiven high prevalence of PIMs occurrence among this population, future research on strategies and interventions rationing PIMs use in the geriatric population are warranted.
Highlights
Older patients are commonly prescribed multiple medications ; medication misadventures are common and expected among older patients
The United Nation estimated that the population of older adults defined as those age 65 or older will almost double in Saudi Arabia from 3% in 2000 to 6% or more by the year 2025 [1]
The use of potentially inappropriate medicines (PIMs) is commonly evaluated using different scales and criteria such as the Beers criteria, which are a set of explicit criteria to identify PIMs
Summary
Older patients are commonly prescribed multiple medications ; medication misadventures are common and expected among older patients. The use of potentially inappropriate medicines (PIMs) further contributes to this risk. This study aimed to examine PIMs use among older patients using the 2015 Beers criteria. The United Nation estimated that the population of older adults defined as those age 65 or older will almost double in Saudi Arabia from 3% in 2000 to 6% or more by the year 2025 [1]. As older adults population is growing, the prevalence of chronic comorbid health conditions secondary to the inevitable nature of ageing expected to increase. This, is potentially associated with an increase in the Polypharmacy among older adults is common and older patients are at higher risk of potentially inappropriate medications (PIMs) use [3]. PIMs are considered one of the commonly encountered medication-related problems among the older population. The use of PIMs is commonly evaluated using different scales and criteria such as the Beers criteria, which are a set of explicit criteria to identify PIMs
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