Trends in commonly used and potentially inappropriate medications in older Korean patients with polypharmacy

Polypharmacy is a global public health concern. This study aimed to determine the prevalence of polypharmacy and trends in the use of commonly used and potentially inappropriate medications among older Korean patients. Individuals aged ≥ 65 years who were prescribed any medication between 2014 and 2...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:BMC geriatrics 2024-06, Vol.24 (1), p.542-9, Article 542
Main Authors: Shin, Woo-Young, Go, Tae-Hwa, Kim, Jung-Ha
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Age groups
Aged
Aged patients
Aged, 80 and over
Alprazolam
Amitriptyline
Antidepressants
Aspirin
Atorvastatin
Benzodiazepines
Chi-square test
Chronic illnesses
Complications and side effects
Diazepam
Drug therapy
Female
Forecasts and trends
Humans
Inappropriate Prescribing - trends
Male
Metformin
Mortality
National health insurance
Older people
Polypharmacy
Potentially inappropriate medication
Potentially Inappropriate Medication List - trends
Prescriptions
Public health
Republic of Korea - epidemiology
Review boards
South Korea
Trends
Tricyclic antidepressants
Zolpidem
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Summary:Polypharmacy is a global public health concern. This study aimed to determine the prevalence of polypharmacy and trends in the use of commonly used and potentially inappropriate medications among older Korean patients. Individuals aged ≥ 65 years who were prescribed any medication between 2014 and 2018 were selected from the Korean National Health Information Database. Joinpoint regression analyses were used to determine trends in the age-adjusted polypharmacy rates by age group. The prescription rates of the most commonly used medications and the most commonly used potentially inappropriate medications were analysed by year or age group for patients with polypharmacy using the chi-square and proportion difference tests. This study included 1,849,968 patients, 661,206 (35.7%) of whom had polypharmacy. Age-adjusted polypharmacy rates increased significantly between 2014 and 2018 (P = 0.046). Among patients with polypharmacy, the most commonly prescribed medications were aspirin (100 mg), atorvastatin, metformin, glimepiride, and rosuvastatin. The most commonly prescribed and potentially inappropriate medications were alprazolam, diazepam, amitriptyline, zolpidem, and dimenhydrinate. There was a significant decrease in the prescription rates for each of these drugs in 2018 compared with 2014 among patients with polypharmacy (all P 
ISSN:1471-2318
1471-2318
DOI:10.1186/s12877-024-05141-8