1. Refining the Definition of Polypharmacy and Its Link to Disability in Older Adults: Conceptualizing Necessary Polypharmacy, Unnecessary Polypharmacy, and Polypharmacy of Unclear Benefit
- Author
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Christopher C Distasio, Erica H. Lee, Nancy E Gibbs, Nolan H Thompson, Michael H. Kanter, John Martin, Lyn Yasumura, Steven G Steinberg, Timothy M Cotter, Mark Dreskin, Peter Khang, Kim Thai, and Jeffrey W Brettler
- Subjects
Gerontology ,Polypharmacy ,Evidence-based practice ,business.industry ,MEDLINE ,Context (language use) ,General Medicine ,030204 cardiovascular system & hematology ,Drug Prescriptions ,Clinical Practice ,03 medical and health sciences ,Regimen ,0302 clinical medicine ,Medicine ,Humans ,Functional status ,Disabled Persons ,030212 general & internal medicine ,business ,Geriatric Assessment ,Prescription Drug Overuse ,Medical literature ,Aged - Abstract
The term polypharmacy in older adults is generally used in a pejorative context in the medical literature. Because of its link to geriatric syndromes and disability, the avoidance of polypharmacy is usually recommended in older adults as a strategy to optimize functional status. However, there are many polypharmacy regimens based on high-quality trials that clearly reduce the risk of disability in older adults. Other guidelines for older adults recommend the use of additional medications that may or may not be evidence based and that may or may not reduce disability. Therefore, we propose that, in the geriatric literature, polypharmacy now be categorized as "necessary polypharmacy," "unnecessary polypharmacy," or "polypharmacy of unclear benefit." In this article, we discuss the 3 categories of polypharmacy and give examples on each polypharmacy regimen and its potential relationship to disability in older adults.
- Published
- 2020