The potentially inappropriate medications among elderly patients with chronic diseases in Shanghai communities and its influence factors

Objective To investigate the potentially inappropriate medication(PIM)among elderly patients with chronic diseases in Shanghai communities and related influence factors. Method Six community Health service Centers were choosen using stratified sampling. Total 968 elderly patients with chronic diseases who visited to the outpatient clinic of Shanghai Community Health Service Centers from July to August 2018 were included in the study. The PIM was investigated according to the 2015 Beers criteria. The χ2 test and multivariate logistic regression model were used to analyze factors related to the PIM. Results The survey showed that 317 elderly patients had PIM with 412 person-doses. In 134 person-doses, the PIM was unrelated to the disease; in 18 person-doses, PIM was caused by interaction of drug with disease/symptoms; in 259 person-doses PIM was related to the drugs that should be cautiously used for elderly; only in 1 person-dose the PIM was caused by the interaction between drugs. The drugs with the highest proportion of PIM were diuretics, benzodiazepines and aspirin. There were significant differences in age, kinds of diseases, kinds of drugs and times of visiting community health service centers between elderly patients with PIM and those without PIM (χ2=42.28, 35.51, 46.47, 38.46; all P<0.05). The main PIM-related factors were age, kinds of diseases, kinds of drugs and times of visiting community health service centers. Conclusion The study shows that the prevalence of PIM among elderly chronic diseases patients in Shanghai communities is relatively high, which is associated with the age, kinds of diseases, kinds of drugs and times of visiting community health service centers. Key words: Chronic disease; Aged; Potentially inappropriate medications; Beers criteria; Influence factors