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Factors associated with potentially inappropriate medication use by the elderly in the Brazilian primary care setting

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Abstract

Background The exposure of elderly patients to potentially inappropriate medication (PIM) is associated with the increased use of health care services. Objective To evaluate both the prevalence of and the factors associated with the use of PIM by elderly patients who are being treated in primary healthcare facilities. Setting Family Health Programme centres in northeastern Brazil. Method A prospective survey of the medications used by elderly patients was performed. A total of 142 participants were randomly selected via systematic sampling. Beers criteria were applied to assess the use of PIM among the investigated sample. All of the medications included in these criteria were assessed for their availability in Brazil. The prevalence of inappropriate medications was chosen as an occurrence measure and was compared among the exposure groups using the prevalence ratio (PR) as a measure of association. Main outcome measure Prevalence and various factors associated with the use of PIM. Results The prevalence of PIM usage was 34.5 %. The factors that exhibited associations included the following: illiteracy (PR = 1.51; 95 % CI = 1.02–2.24); black skin colour (PR = 1.80; 95 % CI = 1.40–2.32); the use of ≥4 drugs per day (PR = 2.36; 95 % CI = 1.79–3.11); the use of medications prescribed by a doctor (PR = 2.52; 95 % CI = 1.12–5.69), and the use of medications supplied by the Brazilian government (PR = 1.42; 95 % CI = 1.10–1.81). The most frequently prescribed PIM included short-acting nifedipine (34.5 %) and methyldopa (9.1 %). Conclusion The data collected in this study indicated a high prevalence of the use of PIM. The factors that contributed the most to this prevalence included medical prescriptions, polypharmacy, medications supplied by the Brazilian National Health System, and black skin colour (specifically, being of African descent).

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Acknowledgments

We would like to acknowledge the full team of the Multidimensional Assessment Study of Elderly Patients Cared for at Family Health Centres.

Funding

This study was partially funded by the Education Programme for Work in Health, Ministry of Education and Culture/Ministry of Health (MEC/MS).

Conflicts of interest

None declared.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Campus Anísio Teixeira, Instituto Multidisciplinar em Saúde, Universidade Federal da Bahia, Rua Rio de Contas, 58, Quadra 17, Lote 58, Bairro Candeias, Vitória da Conquista, Bahia, CEP: 45029-094, Brazil

    Márcio Galvão Oliveira & Sandra Rêgo de Jesus

  2. Universidade Estadual do Sudoeste da Bahia, Estrada do Bem Querer, km 4, Caixa Postal 95, Vitória da Conquista, Bahia, CEP: 45083-900, Brazil

    Welma Wildes Amorim & Victor Alves Rodrigues

  3. Programa de Pós-Graduação em Medicina e Saúde, Universidade Federal da Bahia, Rua Augusto Viana, s/n – Canela Hospital Universitário Prof. Edgar Santos – 5º andar, Salvador, Bahia, CEP: 40.110-060, Brazil

    Luiz Carlos Passos

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  1. Márcio Galvão Oliveira
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  2. Welma Wildes Amorim
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  4. Victor Alves Rodrigues
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  5. Luiz Carlos Passos
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Correspondence to Márcio Galvão Oliveira.

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Oliveira, M.G., Amorim, W.W., de Jesus, S.R. et al. Factors associated with potentially inappropriate medication use by the elderly in the Brazilian primary care setting. Int J Clin Pharm 34, 626–632 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11096-012-9656-9

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11096-012-9656-9

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