Polypharmacy In Elderly Patients Research Articles

Prevalence and predictors of polypharmacy in elderly patients discharged from a tertiary care teaching hospital in Swat, Pakistan: A retrospective cross-sectional study

Background: The use of polypharmacy in the elderly has been the subject of much consideration in recent years. However, its prevalence and risk factors are yet to be properly investigated in Pakistan. Objective: The study investigated the prevalence and risk factors of polypharmacy at discharge in Pakistan. Method: A retrospective cross-sectional study of elderly patients' medical profiles for the year 2021 was performed, and the profiles that met the inclusion criteria were included. Results: The total sample size was 800, and 51.9% of patients received polypharmacy at discharge. The authors found that the female gender (OR = 0.469) has comparatively less risk of receiving polypharmacy. Furthermore, patients with an increased length of stay and increased medication use in the hospital (OR 1.1295, OR = 17.189, respectively) have a high risk of receiving polypharmacy at discharge. Furthermore, patients diagnosed with peripheral vascular disease (OR = 4.689), cerebrovascular accident (OR = 2.764), chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (OR = 3.748), asthma (OR = 2.321), and diabetes mellitus (OR = 2.754) had higher risks of receiving polypharmacy. Conclusion: The study found a high prevalence of polypharmacy at discharge in Pakistan and identified several risk factors that could help to reduce polypharmacy by targeting vulnerable groups.

Polypharmacy and associated factors in South Korean elderly patients with dementia: An analysis using National Health Insurance claims data.

Dementia is accompanied by several symptoms, including cognitive function decline, as well as behavioral and psychological symptoms. Elderly patients with dementia often experience polypharmacy, the concurrent use of multiple medications, due to chronic comorbidities. However, research on polypharmacy in patients with dementia is limited. This study aimed to characterize polypharmacy and associated factors among elderly patients with dementia in South Korea, and compare the characteristics of patients with and without dementia patients. From the National Health Insurance Service (NHIS)-Senior cohort database, we extracted data on patients aged≥60 years who received outpatient treatment in 2019. Polypharmacy was defined as the concurrent use of five or more different oral medications for ≥90 days; excessive polypharmacy referred to the concurrent use of ten or more different oral medications for ≥90 days. We compared the prevalence of polypharmacy between patients with and without and identified the associated factors using a logistic regression model. About 70.3% and 23.7% of patients with dementia exhibited polypharmacy and excessive polypharmacy, respectively. After adjusting for conditions such as age and Charlson's comorbidity index, the likelihood of polypharmacy and excessive polypharmacy significantly increased over time after the diagnosis of dementia. Additionally, under the same conditions, Medical Aid beneficiaries with dementia were more likely to experience polypharmacy and excessive polypharmacy compared to patients with dementia covered by National Health Insurance (NHI). This study reports the latest evidence on the status and risk factors of polypharmacy in elderly patients with dementia. We proposed that careful monitoring and management are required for patients at high risk for polypharmacy.

Medication related problems in elderly patients treated with antipsychotics

AbstractElderly patients treated with antipsychotics are often prescribed multiple medications simultaneously (polypharmacy), leading to an increased risk of various medication-related problems, including irrational polypharmacy, drug-drug interactions, and potentially inappropriate medications (PIMs). Polypharmacy may be rational with clear indications and benefits, but it becomes irrational when better alternatives are available. This irrational polypharmacy is associated with poorer clinical and economic outcomes, including a higher mortality rate. Antipsychotic polypharmacy in elderly patients with schizophrenia is not well-studied and, therefore, is not generally recommended. Long-term antipsychotic use in patients with dementia has also been linked to a higher mortality rate. PIMs, representing a greater risk than benefit, are prevalent in mental health institutions at all healthcare levels, with a prevalence ranging from 40% to 60%. Antipsychotics, along with benzodiazepines, are among the most commonly included in PIMs and polypharmacy in these institutions. Moreover, antipsychotics are frequently implicated in potential severe drug-drug interactions in elderly patients with mental disorders, particularly with antibiotics and antiarrhythmics.Unfortunately, the existing treatment guidelines and meta-analyses mostly do not cover these aspects, which represent a gap between the ‘real clinical’ pharmacology and treatment guidelines. The speaker will summarize the medication-related problems in this population and present practical recommendations for daily clinical practice.Disclosure of InterestNone Declared

Short-term prognosis of polypharmacy in elderly patients treated in emergency departments: results from the EDEN project.

Polypharmacy is a growing phenomenon among elderly individuals. However, there is little information about the frequency of polypharmacy among the elderly population treated in emergency departments (EDs) and its prognostic effect. This study aims to determine the prevalence and short-term prognostic effect of polypharmacy in elderly patients treated in EDs. A retrospective analysis of the Emergency Department Elderly in Needs (EDEN) project's cohort was performed. This registry included all elderly patients who attended 52 Spanish EDs for any condition. Mild and severe polypharmacy was defined as the use of 5-9 drugs and ⩾10 drugs, respectively. The assessed outcomes were ED revisits, hospital readmissions, and mortality 30 days after discharge. Crude and adjusted logistic regression analyses, including the patient's comorbidities, were performed. A total of 25,557 patients were evaluated [mean age: 78 (IQR: 71-84) years]; 10,534 (41.2%) and 5678 (22.2%) patients presented with mild and severe polypharmacy, respectively. In the adjusted analysis, mild polypharmacy and severe polypharmacy were associated with an increase in ED revisits [odds ratio (OR) 1.13 (95% confidence interval (CI): 1.04-1.23) and 1.38 (95% CI: 1.24-1.51)] and hospital readmissions [OR 1.18 (95% CI: 1.04-1.35) and 1.36 (95% CI: 1.16-1.60)], respectively, compared to non-polypharmacy. Mild and severe polypharmacy were not associated with increased 30-day mortality [OR 1.05 (95% CI: 0.89-2.26) and OR 0.89 (95% CI: 0.72-1.12)], respectively. Polypharmacy was common among the elderly treated in EDs and associated with increased risks of ED revisits and hospital readmissions ⩽30 days but not with an increased risk of 30-day mortality. Patients with polypharmacy had a higher risk of ED revisits and hospital readmissions ⩽30 days after discharge.

Polypharmacy in elderly patients with dementia and its effect on recurrent hospital admission

Polypharmacy in elderly patients with dementia and its effect on recurrent hospital admission

Drug‐drug interaction from self‐medication

Polypharmacy in elderly patients poses significant risk for the occurrence of drug‐drug interaction, especially when the patient or caregiver decides to manage discomfort via self‐medication with over‐the‐counter medications or prescription drugs. The following report described a case of adverse serotonergic and cholinergic reaction in an elderly patient after self‐medication.

Prognostic Impact of Polypharmacy following Trans-Catheter Aortic Valve Replacement

Polypharmacy in elderly patients with various comorbidities is associated with mortality and morbidity. However, the prognostic impact of polypharmacy in patients with severe aortic stenosis receiving trans-catheter aortic valve replacement remains unknown. Patients with severe aortic stenosis who received trans-catheter aortic valve replacement between 2015 and 2022 and were followed up at our institute following index discharge were included in this retrospective study. The impact of polypharmacy, which was defined as medication numbers ≥10 at index discharge, upon 2-year all-cause death was investigated. A total of 345 patients (median age 85 [83, 89] years old, 99 (29%) men) were included. Median medication number was 9 (7, 10) at the index discharge and 88 (26%) were classified as receiving polypharmacy. Frailty index, including mini-mental state examination and CSHA score, were not significantly different between those with and without polypharmacy (p > 0.05 for both). Polypharmacy was associated with higher 2-year cumulative mortality with an adjusted hazard ratio of 21.4 (95% confidence interval, 6.06-74.8, p < 0.001). As a sub-analysis, the number of cardiovascular medications was not associated with 2-year mortality (hazard ratio 1.12, 95% confidence interval 0.86-1.48, p = 0.46), whereas a higher number of non-cardiovascular medications was associated with an incremental increase in 2-year mortality with a hazard ratio of 1.39 (95% confidence interval, 1.15-1.63, p < 0.001). In elderly patients with severe aortic stenosis, polypharmacy was associated with worse short-term survival following trans-catheter aortic valve replacement. Prognostic implication of aggressive intervention to decrease the amount of medication among those receiving TAVR requires further prospective studies.

Efficacy of surgical treatment on polypharmacy of elderly patients with lumbar spinal canal stenosis: retrospective exploratory research

BackgroundPolypharmacy is a growing public health problem occurring in all healthcare settings worldwide. Elderly patients with lumbar spinal canal stenosis (LSS) who manifest low back and neuropathic pain and have a high frequency of comorbidity are predicted to take many drugs. However, no studies have reported polypharmacy in elderly patients with LSS. Thus, we aimed to review the polypharmacy among elderly LSS patients with elective surgeries and examine how the surgical treatment reduces the polypharmacy.MethodsWe retrospectively enrolled all the patients aged ≥ 65 years who underwent spinal surgery for LSS between April 2020 and March 2021. The prescribed drugs of participants were directly checked by pharmacists in the outpatient department preoperatively and 6-month and 1-year postoperatively. The baseline characteristics were collected beside the patient-based outcomes including Roland–Morris Disability Questionnaire, Zurich Claudication Questionnaire, and Japanese Orthopaedic Association Back Pain Evaluation Questionnaire (JOABPEQ). The cutoff number of drugs for polypharmacy was defined as 6. The prescription drugs were divided into 9 categories: drugs for neuropsychiatric, cardiovascular, respiratory, digestive, endocrine metabolic, and urinary renal diseases; blood products; pain relief medication; and others.ResultsA total of 102 cases were finally analyzed, with a follow-up rate of 78.0%. Of the participants, the preoperative polypharmacy prevalence was 66.7%. The number of drugs 6-month and 1-year postoperatively was significantly less than the preoperative one. The proportions of polypharmacy at 6 months and 1 year after surgery significantly decreased to 57.8% and 55.9%, respectively. When the prescribed drugs were divided into 9 categories, the number of drugs for pain relief and digestive diseases was significantly reduced after surgery. The multi-variable analysis revealed that a higher score in the psychological disorder of JOABPEQ was associated with 3 or more drugs decreased 1-year postoperatively (OR, 2.5; 95% CI: 1.0–6.1).ConclusionPolypharmacy prevalence was high among elderly LSS patients indicated for lumbar spinal surgery. Additionally, our data showed that lumbar spinal surgery was effective in reducing polypharmacy among elderly LSS patients. Finally, the multi-variable analysis indicated that better psychological condition was associated with the reduction of prescribed drugs after lumbar spinal surgery.

의약품부작용보고원시자료를 활용한 와파린과 스타틴 동시복용의 약물 상호작용 실마리정보 탐색

The increase in polypharmacy in elderly patients is recognized as a serious health, economic, and social problem. Warfarin and statins are commonly co-administered to cardiovascular disease patients. However, there is a potential risk of drug-drug interaction (DDI). The objective of this study was to detect signals of adverse events (AEs) for DDI after concomitant use of warfarin and statins using Korea adverse events reporting system (KAERS) database. KAERS database from January 2016 to December 2020 was used. Omega (Ω) shrinkage measure model and Chi-square statistics model were used to calculate the criteria for detecting AEs signal resulting from concomitant use of warfarin and statins. Three indices were used to define signals: Ω025 (frequentist) &gt;0, Ω025 (Bayesian) &gt;0, and &gt;2. Detected signals were compared with AEs listed on the drug label in Korea, Micromedex, and SIDER for warfarin and statins, respectively. Twenty-seven AEs on reports of concomitant use were detected as signals. Of 27 detected signals, 11 signals, including breath odour not otherwise specified (NOS), depersonalization, gastrointestinal neoplasm NOS, pleural effusion, medical device complication, menopausal symptoms, oedema cerebral, osteitis, prostatic hyperplasia, lipoma, and skin hypertrophy, were not listed on drug label. We identified signals for concomitant use of warfarin and statins. Careful monitoring and further pharmacoepidemiological studies of DDI associated with new signals using other databases are needed.

Medication review in hospitalised patients to reduce morbidity and mortality.

A medication review can be defined as a structured evaluation of a patient's medication conducted by healthcare professionals with the aim of optimising medication use and improving health outcomes. Optimising medication therapy though medication reviews may benefit hospitalised patients. We examined the effects of medication review interventions in hospitalised adult patients compared to standard care or to other types of medication reviews on all-cause mortality, hospital readmissions, emergency department contacts and health-related quality of life. In this Cochrane Review update, we searched for new published and unpublished trials using the following electronic databases from 1 January 2014 to 17 January 2022 without language restrictions: the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (CENTRAL), MEDLINE, Embase, the Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature (CINAHL), ClinicalTrials.gov and the WHO International Clinical Trials Registry Platform (ICTRP). To identify additional trials, we searched the reference lists of included trials and other publications by lead trial authors, and contacted experts. We included randomised trials of medication reviews delivered by healthcare professionals for hospitalised adult patients. We excluded trials including outpatients and paediatric patients. Two review authors independently selected trials, extracted data and assessed risk of bias. We contacted trial authors for data clarification and relevant unpublished data. We calculated risk ratios (RRs) for dichotomous data and mean differences (MDs) or standardised mean differences (SMDs) for continuous data (with 95% confidence intervals (CIs)). We used the GRADE (Grades of Recommendation, Assessment, Development and Evaluation) approach to assess the overall certainty of the evidence. In this updated review, we included a total of 25 trials (15,076 participants), of which 15 were new trials (11,501 participants). Follow-up ranged from 1 to 20 months. We found that medication reviews in hospitalised adults may have little to no effect on mortality (RR 0.96, 95% CI 0.87 to 1.05; 18 trials, 10,108 participants; low-certainty evidence); likely reduce hospital readmissions (RR 0.93, 95% CI 0.89 to 0.98; 17 trials, 9561 participants; moderate-certainty evidence); may reduce emergency department contacts (RR 0.84, 95% CI 0.68 to 1.03; 8 trials, 3527 participants; low-certainty evidence) and have very uncertain effects on health-related quality of life (SMD 0.10, 95% CI -0.10 to 0.30; 4 trials, 392 participants; very low-certainty evidence). Medication reviews in hospitalised adult patients likely reduce hospital readmissions and may reduce emergency department contacts. The evidence suggests that mediation reviews may have little to no effect on mortality, while the effect on health-related quality of life is very uncertain. Almost all trials included elderly polypharmacy patients, which limits the generalisability of the results beyond this population.

Polypharmacy in Elderly Patients With Non-Valvular Atrial Fibrillation - The Trail to Adverse Events.

Polypharmacy in Elderly Patients With Non-Valvular Atrial Fibrillation - The Trail to Adverse Events.

Applications for pharmacogenomics in pharmacy practice: A scoping review.

Pharmacogenomics (PGx) can provide valuable pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic information for the pharmacist's assessment of drug therapy, especially within medication therapy management (MTM) services. However, no review has comprehensively mapped the pharmacists' use of PGx in practice-based research. Doing so would allow future researchers, practitioners, and policy-makers to identify the ideal populations and settings for PGx implementation within the pharmacy. The purpose of this review is to identify the evidence to date of PGx use in pharmacy practice. A scoping review was conducted to find all studied non-oncologic pharmacy practices incorporating PGx testing. Search terms were applied to 5 databases and relevant journals. Characteristics of patients, pharmacy settings, genetic tests, and outcomes were summarized to determine models most likely to benefit patients. The search identified 43 studies on the use of PGx by pharmacists published between 2007 and 2020. CYP2C19 testing with antiplatelets was the most studied model, found in both community and institutional settings. It also was the most actionable test: approximately 30% of patients have polymorphisms indicating a need for alternative antiplatelets, and identifying these patients can reduce morbidity and mortality by more than 50%. As technology shifts, broader studies using multi-gene panel tests within MTM demonstrate an approximate 50% decrease in emergency visits and hospitalizations in elderly polypharmacy patients. Clinical benefit or drug-gene interactions are also found in other cardiovascular, psychiatric, analgesic, and gastrointestinal indications. No evaluations of actual costs or of pharmacist prescribing within pharmacy-based PGx have been performed. Facilitators towards successful PGx implementation included pharmacist education, collaboration with other healthcare providers, and the use of clinical decision software. Pharmacogenomic testing has demonstrated feasibility and improved medication outcomes in pharmacy practice, including in the community pharmacy. Further PGx research should be directed towards pharmacist prescribing, pharmacist education, and pharmacoeconomics.

The efficacy of single pharmacist medication review among type II diabetic patients who take six chronic medications or more: a case\u2013control study

BackgroundPharmacist medication review has been implemented in many health organizations throughout the world in an attempt to alleviate the underlying risk of polypharmacy in elderly patients. These consultations are often frequent and prolonged, and are thus associated with increased costs. To date, data regarding the most effective way to utilize pharmacist consultations for the improvement of health status is scant.AimTo evaluate the effectiveness of a single pharmacist consultation on changes in chronic medication regimes and on selected outcomes of diabetes 1-year after the consultation.MethodsA case–control study included an intervention group of 740 patients who had pharmacist consultations and a reference group of 1476 matched patients who did not have a pharmacist consultation. 1-year outcome measures were compared including changes in medications, improved safety, and objective variables such as Hba1c, blood pressure, and lipid profile.ResultsIn the pharmacist consultation group, there were significantly more treatment changes ([mean 1.5 vs. 0.7, p < 0.001 medications were stopped], and [mean 1.3 vs. 0.4, p < 0.05 medications were started]). Patient safety improved with a general reduction in opiates and benzodiazepines ([50.0% vs. 31.6%, p < 0.05 opioids were stopped] and [58.8% vs 43.8%, p < 0.001 benzodiazepines were stopped]). Sulfonylurea treatment reduced (10.7% vs. 3.6%, p < 0.05 patients who stopped Sulfonylurea) and Glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonists (GLP-1) increased (16.4% vs. 11.2%, p < 0.001 patients who started GLP-1). Additionally, HbA1c levels showed a small decrease in the pharmacist consultation group ([− 0.18 ± 1.11] vs. [− 0.051 ± 0.80], p = 0.0058) but no significant differences were found regarding blood pressure or lipids profile.ConclusionA single pharmacist consultation beneficially impacted specific clinical and patient safety outcomes. Pharmacist consultations may thus help resolve polypharmacy complexities in primary care.

Evaluation of NFC-Guidable System to Manage Polypharmacy in Elderly Patients

A complete and thorough understanding by patients of their prescriptions is one of the most critical components of a successful treatment journey. Being unfamiliar with the intricacies of prescribed medication can cause serious health risks due to not adhering to prescription instructions or noting potential drug interactions, which can lead to life-threatening injuries. Pharmacists face communication barriers (including non-English speaking patients), lack of time, lack of knowledge, workload, and frequent interruption when dispensing medicines often preventing them from providing the necessary guidance to their patients. To minimize this risk, an NFC-Guidable polypharmacy system was developed integrating Near Field Technology (NFC) into prescription packages. The intention being, to automate prescription identification for elderly patients in hospitals and primary health care (PHC) centers where Arabic is their native language and patients have five or more prescriptions at a time. The system provides prescription information such as name, expiration date based on the Islamic calendar, appropriate dosage, the correct time for a dose, contraindication, and other relevant instructions in Arabic. The objectives of the system are to improve patient safety and enhance the quality of prescription dispensing for elderly and non-English speaking patients. An evaluation study with polypharmacy elderly patients and pharmacists is conducted to understand the perception and acceptance of the system by both groups. The strengths and weaknesses of the system as well as suggestions for improvement from participants were also gathered. The study results indicate that the system helps patients to avoid misuse of sensitive medication and authenticates their prescribed prescription drugs before taking them. The system also assists pharmacists in improving the efficiency of dispensing medication and streamline processes. Overall, the application was well received by both patients and pharmacists. Thus, NFC technology should be integrated into the healthcare sector to overcome language barriers, the lack of specialized medication labels for illiterate or patients with sight constraints as well as unreasonable expectations placed on pharmacists.

Prescription drug survey of elderly patients with degenerative musculoskeletal disorders.

Elderly patients with musculoskeletal disorders are generally expected to receive many prescription drugs for non-musculoskeletal comorbidities and for alleviating chronic musculoskeletal pains. The aims of this study were to review the use of prescription drugs in elderly patients with elective surgeries for musculoskeletal disorders and to identify the factors associated with polypharmacy in elderly patients with musculoskeletal disorders. We retrospectively collected the clinical data of patients aged ≥65 years who underwent knee arthroplasty, total hip arthroplasty, or spinal surgery for lumbar or cervical degenerative disorders at our institution. The following data were evaluated: age, body mass index, sex, surgical site, prescription drugs used, American Society of Anesthesiologists physical status grade, and medical history, including hypertension, hyperlipidemia, diabetes, stroke, malignancy, and smoking. Polypharmacy was defined as the use of six or more drugs. In the present study, 767 consecutive patients were evaluated retrospectively. The prevalence of polypharmacy was >50% in the elderly patients with musculoskeletal disorders. The mean numbers of total drugs and pain relief medications were significantly higher in the lumbar surgery group than in the other surgery groups. Multivariable analysis revealed that the factors associated with polypharmacy were lumbar surgery, hypertension, hyperlipidemia, diabetes, and malignancy. This is the first study to cross-sectionally review the drugs prescribed to patients with degenerative musculoskeletal disorders. It clearly identified the factors associated with polypharmacy in elderly patients with degenerative musculoskeletal disorders. Particular attention should be paid to polypharmacy in elderly patients with lumbar degenerative disorders. Geriatr Gerontol Int 2022; 22: 121-126.

Polypharmacy in elderly patients with falls

Background: Falls in elderly–a multifactorial syndrome. One of the modifiable factors is polypharmacy. STOPP/START criteria are used for correction of polypharmacy in geriatrics.Aim: Assessment of the prevalence of polypharmacy, analysis and correction of pharmacotherapy using STOPP/START criteria in patients with falls.Materials and methods: The study included 655 patients hospitalized in the geriatric department over 60 years of age, who were divided into two groups. Group 1 (n=332, 50.7%)–patients with 1 or more falls, group 2 (n=323,49.3%)–patients without falls. The analysis of the received therapy before hospitalization was performed. After that, based on the indications, contraindications and STOPP/START criteria, drug therapy was corrected in patients with falls.Results: Patients of group 1 took 4.5±2.18 drugs, group 2–4.3±2.6. Polypharmacy was diagnosed in 150 (45.2%) patients with falls and in 122 (37.8%) patients without falls. Patients with falls were more likely to receive sleeping pills, NSAIDs. Univariate analysis showed that falls were associated with NSAIDs (OR 2.15, 95% CI 1.38–3.35, p=0.001) and sleeping pills (OR 2.03, 95% CI 1.02–4.02, p=0.047). An audit and correction of therapy was performed: in 108 (32.5%) patients the number of prescribed drugs was reduced. Patients with falls were prescribed statins, antidementia drugs, anticonvulsants and antidepressants as components of therapy for chronic pain syndrome, chondroitin sulfate and glucosamine sulfate for the treatment of osteoarthritis, calcium and antiresorbtive therapy, antianemic drugs, vitamin D. Antiplatelet agents, digoxin, sleeping pills and NSAIDs were less frequently prescribed. STOPP/START criteria and their frequency in patients with falls were analyzed. 141 cases of potentially non-recommended but prescribed medications were identified. STOPP criteria were for the administration of NSAIDs (n=53, 37.6%) and acetylsalicylic acid (n=62, 44%). There were 458 cases of potentially recommended but not prescribed medications. The most common START criteria were not for the administration of vitamin D and statins.Conclusion. Half of elderly patients with falls have polypharmacy. These patients are more likely to take sleeping pills and NSAIDs. STOPP criteria most often concerned the appointment of NSAIDs and acetylsalicylic acid, and the START criteria revealed the absence of the appointment of vitamin D and statins.

Chronic illnesses and polypharmacy in elderly patients: A hospital-based study in Northern Sri Lanka

Population aging and multiple pathology among older people have increased medicines use in elderly. Aim of this study was to evaluate chronic illnesses and polypharmacy and to determine factors associated with polypharmacy among hospitalized elderly at Teaching Hospital-Jaffna. This was a cross sectional, descriptive study. Elderly and polypharmacy were defined as ≥65years and concomitant use of ≥6 medications for ≥1 month respectively. Data were collected from bedhead-tickets of 288 elderly patients using data extraction sheet. Chi-squared and paired t-test were performed to determine the level of significance and unadjusted odd ratios were calculated to determine the association between polypharmacy and common chronic illnesses. A p value &lt;0.05 was set as statistically significance. Mean age was 72 (SD±6.2) and majority were males (53.5%). Relatively higher proportion, 58.7% (n=169) of patients had polypharmacy. Seven chronic illnesses were prevalent in &gt;10% of the patients. Lipid-modifying (80.9%) and antithombotic agents (76.4%) were the top two subgroups prescribed to elderly. Polypharmacy was substantially increased with increasing number of chronic illnesses (p&lt;0.05). Significant association (p&lt;0.05) was found between polypharmacy and coronary heart disease, anaemia, heart failure, asthma and diabetes mellitus. Significantly greater number of medications were prescribed on discharge compared to admission (p&lt;0.05). This study concluded that polypharmacy was common among hospitalized elderly and increases with hospitalization. There was increased tendency to prescribe antithrombotic and lipid-modifying agents. These findings indicate the need for medication reconciliation and review in elderly patient. Further studies targeting wider population are needed to determine the appropriateness of polypharmacy in elderly.

High Prevalence of Multimorbidity and Polypharmacy in Elderly Patients With Chronic Pain Receiving Home Care are Associated With Multiple Medication-Related Problems.

Aim: To measure the extent of polypharmacy, multimorbidity and potential medication-related problems in elderly patients with chronic pain receiving home care. Methods: Data of 355 patients aged ≥65 years affected by chronic pain in home care who were enrolled in the ACHE study in Berlin, Germany, were analyzed. History of chronic diseases, diagnoses, medications including self-medication were collected for all patients. Multimorbidity was defined as the presence of ≥2 chronic conditions and levels were classified by the Charlson-Comorbidity-Index. Polypharmacy was defined as the concomitant intake of ≥5 medications. Potentially clinically relevant drug interactions were identified and evaluated; underuse of potentially useful medications as well as overprescription were also assessed. Results: More than half of the patients (55.4%) had moderate to severe comorbidity levels. The median number of prescribed drugs was 9 (range 0–25) and polypharmacy was detected in 89.5% of the patients. Almost half of them (49.3%) were affected by excessive polypharmacy (≥10 prescribed drugs). Polypharmacy and excessive polypharmacy occurred at all levels of comorbidity. We detected 184 potentially relevant drug interactions in 120/353 (34.0%) patients and rated 57 (31.0%) of them as severe. Underprescription of oral anticoagulants was detected in 32.3% of patients with atrial fibrillation whereas potential overprescription of loop diuretics was observed in 15.5% of patients. Conclusion: Multimorbidity and polypharmacy are highly prevalent in elderly outpatients with chronic pain receiving home care. Medication-related problems that could impair safety of drug treatment in this population are resulting from potentially relevant drug interactions, overprescribing as well as underuse.

Assessment for the Risk Factors of Polypharmacy in Elderly Patients

Polypharmacy is typical clinical issue in elderly people, it includes prescribed medications, over-the-counter (OTC) and herbal preparations.A total of 173 Iraqi elderly patients of age 60 years and above, were enrolled in this study. Data were collected using structured, cross-sectional questionnaire-based survey. List of required data were recorded by interviewing patients during admission to Baghdad teaching hospital, Al-Yarmouk teaching hospital and 3 community pharmacies in Baghdad governorate. From August - September 2019 in Baghdad-Iraq. Data were analyzed using SPSS software (version 25). Relationships between daily drug consumptions (DDC) and other continuous variables were examined using spearmen’s correlation. For between-group comparisons of daily drug consumptions, Student’s t-tests were performed. For categorical variables with more than 2 categories, multi-factor ANOVA (Analysis of variance) was performed.Significant number of the older Iraqi patient population has a high prevalence of polypharmacy with a highprevalence of consumption of lipid modifying drugs, proton pump inhibitor, oral antidiabetic drugs, and angiotensin II receptor antagonist. according to this study. The findings of this study showed that the higherDDC was significantly associated with hypertension alongside higher number of comorbidities, ADRs andPIM. Intraclass polypharmacy was highly associated with anti-hypertensives and lipid modifying drugs, suggesting revision of the drug-dispensing policy among older Iraqi population.

Polypharmacy in elderly patients with high risk of cardiovascular disease: How is it associated with adherence and health-related quality of life?

Background and Aims: Poor medication adherence undermines treatment outcomes. With polypharmacy getting increasingly common, adherence becomes a growing concern. We sought to conduct a survey regarding polypharmacy, adherence and health-related quality of life (HRQoL) in community-dwelling old patients with various co-morbidities, all at high cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk, who were receiving polypharmacy. We also investigated the relation of polypharmacy-adherence-HRQoL and their associations with patient characteristics.