Use of potentially inappropriate medications may increase hospitalization risk

Potentially inappropriate medication use was linked with a 16% increased risk of hospitalization in a population-based study of elderly individuals.

The study followed more than one million adults for over a decade. Under a theoretical scenario with zero exposures to potentially inappropriate medications, 27,444 (1.7 percent) fewer hospitalizations would have occurred.

"Our robust study results corroborate existing evidence that exposure to inappropriate medications in the elderly is associated with negative health outcomes. As such, reducing inappropriate medication use in this vulnerable population is of paramount importance for patients, clinicians, and the health care system in order to enhance quality of life in while decreasing the of potentially preventable hospitalizations," said Dr. Vittorio Maio, senior author of the British Journal of Clinical Pharmacology study.

More information: S. Varga et al. Hospitalization Rates during Potentially Inappropriate Medication Use in a Large Population-Based Cohort of Older Adults, British Journal of Clinical Pharmacology (2017). DOI: 10.1111/bcp.13365

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Citation: Use of potentially inappropriate medications may increase hospitalization risk (2017, July 27) retrieved 28 March 2024 from https://medicalxpress.com/news/2017-07-potentially-inappropriate-medications-hospitalization.html
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