Prevalence of comorbidity and polypharmacy among hospitalized elderly patients

Abstract :

Aging seldom comes alone and it is considered to be the major factor for many diseases and comorbidities and disabilities. The objectives of the study are to examine demographic characteristics and prevalence of comorbidities and polypharmacy of elderly patients who were admitted at Sebha Medical Center according to the selected period. This study is a descriptive and retrospective cross-sectional study conducted in Sebha in 2021. From 195 participants in the study, the highest rate of patients was from the age group of 65-74 years which accounted for 86 participants (44.0%) and followed by the age group of 75-84 years which was reported by 65 participants (33.0%). The majority of elderly patients have hypertension, (n=116, 59.0%) and over one-third of the patients (n=73, 37.0%) have diabetes mellitus while nearly one-quarter of patients have both diseases at the same time (n=47, 24.0%). Almost, three-quarters of patients have electrolyte imbalance (n=142, 72.0%). Nearly, two-thirds of the patients had three to five comorbidity diseases (n=122, 63.0%). Whereas, over one-third of the patients had just one or two comorbidities (n=70, 36.0%). Almost all the participants have polypharmacy (n=187, 96.0%). Just above half of the patients have five to ten medications (n=100, 51.0%) compared with 45.0% of the patients from those who have more than ten medications (n=87). This study showed a strong relationship between the prevalence of polypharmacy and the number of comorbidities. A Spearman correlation test indicated that the rate of comorbidities was related to polypharmacy with a significant correlation (p<0.01). The present study found a high prevalence of comorbidities and polypharmacy among elderly inpatients. Based on this high prevalence, practicing pharmaceutical care could play an effective role in reducing the risk of inappropriate polypharmacy among hospitalized elderly patients by encouraging clinical pharmacists to engage in clinical activities in hospitals.

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Citation :

Alssageer et al. (2022) Prevalence of comorbidity and polypharmacy among hospitalized elderly patients. Mediterr J Pharm Pharm Sci. 2 (1): 53-61. [Article number: 53]. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.6399521