Potentially inappropriate medication use in hospitalized elderly patients

OBJECTIVE: This study aimed to assess the prevalence of potentially inappropriate medication prescription in hospitalized elderly patients according to the 2019 American Geriatrics Society Beers Criteria. METHODS: This study is a prospective analysis of electronic medical records of elderly patients admitted to the Department of Medicine, Hospital Central da Irmandade da Santa Casa de Misericórdia de São Paulo, between 1 September 2020 and 30 April 2021. RESULTS: A total of 142 patients (85 women and 57 men) with a mean age of 74.5±7.3 years (65–99 years) were assessed. Of these, 108 (76.1%) were elderly (age ≥65 years and <80 years) and 34 (23.9%) long-lived (age ≥80 years). The average length of stay found in the sample was 25.3±28.7 days (between 2 and 235 days), and 102 out of the 140 patients assessed remained in the hospital for up to 29 days. Sixteen drugs considered potentially inappropriate medication were found in the patients’ prescriptions, with at least one potentially inappropriate medication having been prescribed to 141 (99.3%) patients. Elderly patients had a mean of 2.57±0.94 potentially inappropriate medication prescribed versus 2.56±0.89 among long-lived patients. The most prescribed potentially inappropriate medication were as follows: regular human insulin as required (85.2%), and omeprazole (73.9%) and metoclopramide as required (61.3%). CONCLUSION: The study sample showed significant percentages of potentially inappropriate medication prescriptions for the elderly admitted to the hospital.