Healthy Aging & Clinical Care in the Elderly

The use of medication and polypharmacy are increasing among older people and inappropriate drug use (IDU) and drug related side effects have been discussed more intensively. Although definitions of polypharmacy and IDU differ, the last decade criteria have been established which enables comparison of published studies. The aim of this study was to determine the frequency of polypharmacy and IDU among subjects ≥ 65 years.

Fourteen studies fulfilled criteria for polypharmacy and prevalences ranged from 27% to 59% in primary care patients compared to 46%–84% in hospital care. Furthermore, drug treatment tends to increase over time. Ten studies fulfilled the criteria for IDU with prevalences from 27% to 56%.

Conclusion: Polypharmacy and IDU is a common phenomenon among older people but IDU did not differ between primary care and hospital patients. There is a need for prospective studies on drug use among older persons.