Prescribed and Nonprescribed Drug Use in an Ambulatory Elderly Population

Drug Use in an Elderly Chinese Population: Prevalence and Associated Factors

“…In a study of 5,201 community dwelling American adults aged 65 years and over, 76% were taking at least one medicine [10], while in another survey of 61 functional ly active subjects aged 76-96 years, approxi mately 75% were taking medications [4], As in other studies, the use of prescription drugs was higher among women [3]. The higher preva lence of drug use in women may be related to increased morbidity, or to different attitudes to life and health [11], The percentages taking one to three medications among this elderly population were similar to those in the 1981 Canada Health Survey (30, 20, 20%) [6].…”

A longitudinal study of constipation and laxative use in a community-dwelling elderly population

“…Several international studies have reported the prevalence of laxative use in the community-dwelling elderly ranging from 10% to 25% (Campbell et al, 1993;Chaplin et al, 2000;Marfil, Davies, & Dettmar, 2005;May, Stewart, Hale, & Marks, 1982;Pahor, Guralnik, Chrischilles, & Wallace, 1994;Ruby, Fillenbaum, Kuchibhatla, & Hanlon, 2003;Stoehr, Ganguli, Seaberg, Echement, & Belle, 1997;Stoller, 1988;Whitehead, Drinkwater, Cheskin, Heller, & Schuster, 1989). The reported prevalence may vary according to the definition of laxative used, and whether the laxative was prescribed or non-prescribed.…”

“…The reported prevalence may vary according to the definition of laxative used, and whether the laxative was prescribed or non-prescribed. U.S. studies have found laxative use to be higher in females than males (May et al, 1982;Stoehr et al, 1997), laxative usage increases with age (Stoehr et al, 1997) and, with the exception of lactulose, all laxative products were over-the-counter (OTC) medicines with few prescribed by doctors (Ruby et al, 2003). However there have been few Australian studies of constipation and laxative use in the community dwelling elderly, and no published Australian study has investigated the association of laxative use with constipation in any population.…”

Resting Heart Rates in an Ambulatory Elderly Population: An Evaluation of Age, Sex, Symptoms, and Medication

“…Participants are referred to private physicians for follow-up care when a clinically important medical disorder is detected. Methods used in the screening process have been previously de scribed in detail [8,9], Participants are scheduled for annual screening appointments by telephone or personal visit about 5 months in advance. One week prior to the scheduled visit, a letter is mailed to remind the participant of the appointment as well as a detailed health question naire which also requests information on prescribed and nonprescribed medications used on a regular basis.…”