Prevalence and Risk of Polypharmacy among Community-Dwelling, Elderly Kuwaiti Patients.
Med Princ Pract
; 29(2): 166-173, 2020.
Article
em En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-31509828
ABSTRACT
OBJECTIVES:
To estimate the prevalence of polypharmacy in community-dwelling, older Kuwaiti patients, describe the number and types of drugs used, and identify risk factors associated with polypharmacy. SUBJECTS ANDMETHODS:
This was a descriptive cross-sectional questionnaire-based survey in which we interviewed 500 community-dwelling Kuwaiti adults over 65 years of age. The data collection occurred during a 4-month period from March to July 2017.RESULTS:
Fifty-two percent (n = 260) of the patients were males, with a mean age of 71.73 ± 5.32 years. The prevalence of polypharmacy (5-8 drugs) and excessive polypharmacy (>8 drugs) was 58.4% (n = 292) and 10.2% (n = 51), respectively. The risk factors associated with an increased number of medicines used were female gender (p = 0.019), a lower level of education (p = 0.003), a high number of hospital admissions (p = 0.000), clinics visited by the patient (p =0.000), and number of comorbidities (p = 0.000). The most commonly used medications (82.6% of the study population) were blood glucose-lowering agents, excluding insulin. Other commonly used medications were antihypertensive drugs and lipid-modifying agents.CONCLUSION:
A significant sector of the older Kuwaiti patient population has a high prevalence of polypharmacy and is thus exposed to its potential hazards. The current study highlights the need to revise the drug-dispensing policy among community-dwelling, older Kuwaiti people, as well as to initiate educational programs among healthcare practitioners concerning prescribing issues in older individuals.Palavras-chave
Texto completo:
1
Coleções:
01-internacional
Base de dados:
MEDLINE
Assunto principal:
Polimedicação
/
Uso de Medicamentos
Tipo de estudo:
Etiology_studies
/
Observational_studies
/
Prevalence_studies
/
Prognostic_studies
/
Risk_factors_studies
Limite:
Aged
/
Aged80
/
Female
/
Humans
/
Male
País/Região como assunto:
Asia
Idioma:
En
Revista:
Med Princ Pract
Assunto da revista:
EDUCACAO
Ano de publicação:
2020
Tipo de documento:
Article