Evaluation of the geriatric patients prescription for inappropriate medications frequency at Larkana Sindh Hospital in Pakistan

• Published in: Clinical epidemiology and global health 2020-12, Vol.8 (4), p.1390-1394
• Main Authors: Mangi, Altaf A., Hammad, Mohamed Anwar, Khan, Haroon, Arain, Shumaila P., Shahzad, Muhammad A., Dar, Eshwa, Alam, Anila, Hassanein, Ahmed H.A.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Beers criteria; Geriatrics patients; Inappropriate medication; Medication error; Polypharmacy prescription
• ISSN: 2213-3984; 2213-3984
• DOI: 10.1016/j.cegh.2020.06.001

Aging is the irreversible change in the human physiology which occurs with the passage of time and it becomes very much critical to recommend drugs among the geriatrics patients because their body response is quite different. The purpose of the current study is to assess and evaluate the potentially inappropriate medications among the geriatric patients at the tertiary care Hospital of Larkana Sindh which is the biggest Hospital in the Northern Part of Sindh. The descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted which included the 500 patients aged more than 60 years. The data was collected from the patients' case charts and the questionnaire distributed among the patients. BEERS′ criteria was used to detect the frequency of chronic disorders in geriatric patients and appraise the polypharmacy. The male patients were 42.6% and the female patients were 57.4%. The inappropriate medication use (IMU) was observed among 22.6% patients. Inappropriate antibiotics were seen in 35.39%, Benzodiazepine 28.32%, non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) 15.04%, cardiovascular system (CVS) drugs 12.39% of patients. Parenteral route of administration was observed in 70.04% of patients. Polypharmacy is highly prevalent in the prescriptions of geriatrics patients, due to certain reasons like a chronic disease. Clinical Pharmacist can be better placed to provide his professional activities in this context. The study is important to•Improve the safety of prescribing medications for older adults.•Emphasize deprescribing medications that are unnecessary, which helps to reduce the problems of polypharmacy, drug interactions, and adverse drug reactions.•Improve the risk–benefit ratio of medication regimens in at-risk people.•Increase the rational medications use among elderly patients.