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As the population ages, multiple chronic illnesses and hospital shopping leads to high rates of polypharmacy and potentially inappropriate medication (PIM) use in Taiwan. The Screening Tool of Older Persons' potentially inappropriate Prescriptions (STOPP) criteria and Beers criteria are the most commonly used tools to screen for PIM in the elderly and have been updated in recent years. However, little studies have assessed the prevalence and types of PIM use in Taiwan by the updated criteria.
Objectives:
To determine the prevalence and types of PIMs prescribed at outpatient setting from a hospital in Taiwan.
Study Design:
This is a single-center, retrospective observational study conducted in Shuang-Ho hospital (SHH), Taipei, Taiwan.
Methods:
We used Beers criteria (2015) and STOPP criteria (Version 2) to screen for the PIM use in outpatients during January 1st, 2015-August 31st, 2015. Patients aged>65 years, having more than two refillable prescriptions for chronic illnesses, and taking at least seven medications were recruited. The PIM prevalence was calculated by dividing the total number of PIMs by the total number of medications.
Results:
A total of 11,385 prescriptions from 474 patients had been reviewed. The overall PIM prevalence was 16.7%. The most common PIM categories were central nervous systems (5.80%; 660/11,385; benzodiazepines were the most common PIM), antiplatelet/anticoagulant (5.58%; 635/11,385; aspirin was the most common PIM), and cardiovascular system (3.21%; 366/11,385; doxazosin was the most common PIM).
Conclusions:
This is the first study analyzed the PIM prevalence in Taiwan by the new version of Beers and STOPP criteria. The prevalence in this study is similar to the results of previous international studies. PIM use in the elderly may lead to serious adverse effects. Further studies are needed to develop an intervention and follow-up plans for PIM use in Taiwanese patients to improve patient safety.