Prevalence of polypharmacy in community-dwelling older adults from seven centres in five European countries: a cross-sectional study of DO-HEALTH

Abstract

ObjectiveTo investigate the prevalence of polypharmacy and characteristics associated with polypharmacy in older adults from seven European cities.DesignCross-sectional study of baseline data from DO-HEALTH.Setting and participantsDO-HEALTH enrolled 2157 community-dwelling adults age 70 and older from seven centres in Europe. Participants were excluded if they had major health problems or Mini-Mental State Examination Score <24 at baseline.Primary outcome measuresExtensive information on prescription and over-the-counter medications were recorded. Polypharmacy was defined as the concomitant use of five or more medications, excluding vitamins or dietary supplements. Bivariate and multivariable logistic regression was used to test the association of sociodemographic factors (age, sex, years of education, living situation and city) and health-related indicators (number of comorbidities, cognitive function, frailty status, body mass index (BMI), prior fall, self-rated health and smoking status) with polypharmacy.Results27.2% of participants reported polypharmacy ranging from 16.4% in Geneva to 60.8% in Coimbra. In the multivariable logistic regression analyses, older age (OR 1.07; 95% CI 1.04 to 1.10), greater BMI (OR 1.09; 95% CI 1.06 to 1.12) and increased number of comorbidities (OR 2.13; 95% CI 1.92 to 2.36) were associated with polypharmacy. Women were less likely to report polypharmacy than men (OR 0.65; 95% CI 0.51 to 0.84). In comparison to participants from Zurich, participants from Coimbra were more likely to report polypharmacy (OR 2.36; 95% CI 1.56 to 3.55), while participants from Geneva or Toulouse were less likely to report polypharmacy ((OR 0.36; 95% CI 0.22 to 0.59 and OR 0.64; 95% CI 0.42 to 0.96), respectively). Living situation, smoking status, years of education, prior fall, cognitive function, self-rated health and frailty status were not significantly associated with polypharmacy.ConclusionPolypharmacy is common among relatively healthy older adults, with moderate variability across seven European cities. Independent of several confounders, being a woman, older age, greater BMI and greater number of comorbidities were associated with increased odds for polypharmacy.Trial registration numberNCT01745263.

Knowledge, Attitudes and Practices Related to Medication, Antibiotics, and Vaccination among Public Service Population: National Survey Conducted in France

“…Compared with other populations, the public service population was particularly specific because several socio-demographic variables, usually known to impact KAP demonstrated no significant effect in our study. Sex, education level, marital status and the fact of suffering from a chronic disease that have been identified as determinants in other studies [ 32 , 33 , 34 , 35 ] did not statistically modify the KAP in this public service population. However, the occupational status, which is mainly linked to age but not only, allowed for the dichotomization of the sample respondents between workers and retired.…”

Prevalence, Characteristics and Determinants of Polypharmacy Among Elderly Patients Attending Primary Healthcare Centres in Bahrain

“…30 Furthermore, a large multicentre study, conducted in primary healthcare centres across Europe, reported a polypharmacy prevalence of 27.2% (a range of 16.4% to 60.8%). 31 The variability in the reported prevalence rates of polypharmacy among elderly patients is multifactorial. One reason is the heterogeneity in the definition of polypharmacy among the studies.…”

Needs, barriers and facilitators for a healthier lifestyle in haemodialysis patients: The GoodRENal project

“…A comparison between the perception of patients from the different countries participating in the study shows that patients from Spain and Sweden consider that they have worse attentional or learning capacity, but better functioning of executive functions than patients from Greece and Belgium. While the results obtained pertain to a small sample of patients and may not be entirely representative, we can infer, based on previous literature, that potential differences could be associated with the age of the participants enrolled in the study (despite the Spanish are the older and the Swedish the younger ones), cultural and socioeconomic aspects, the healthcare system and the existing coverage in each country, as well as the available mental health specialists' assistance (De Godoi Rezende Costa Molino et al., 2022).…”