Cross-Sectional Observational Study on Association of Polypharmacy With Health-Related Quality of Life in Patients With Hypertension

Introduction Hypertension is one of the major co-morbidities affecting older Indians, though current trends show that it is increasingly being diagnosed in younger adults as well. In elderly members of the population, it has been shown to be associated with other co-morbidities, making its management difficult. Among the issues that have arisen with its treatment is the increased prevalence of polypharmacy. Thus, there is a need to identify the issues arising from this increase in medications. In particular, the patient’s health-related quality of life (HRQoL) can be assessed and interpreted to ensure only appropriate polypharmacy is practiced. Methods The adjusted Research and Development (RAND) 36-Item Health Survey 1.0 for health-related quality of life was sent to a consecutive sampling of 100 hypertensive patients at a rural tertiary care hospital in Wardha District. They were all clinically diagnosed with hypertension and had been prescribed allopathic medication for the same. They were instructed to answer all the questions to the best of their abilities, and each question was then scored from 0 to 100. In addition, they were given questions regarding their age, sociodemographic details, number of medications and frequency of dosage, and additional co-morbidities. The independent variable, i.e., the number of medications (polypharmacy), was then compared to the physical and mental scores they received on the 36-Item Short Form survey (SF-36) to see if there was an association between the two. Result The patients with hypertension that satisfied the criteria for polypharmacy scored lower in the Physical Component Score (PCS) of the HRQoL with a mean difference of 10.4 points. This is a significant value, and when studied in a multivariate linear regression model, controlling for the covariates mentioned above, indicated a statistically significant and negative association between the number of medications and adjusted PCS scores (β = −5.437, p<0.05, 95% CI −8.392 to −2.482). In regards to the Mental Component Score (MCS) of the HRQoL, a difference of 3.72 points was observed unadjusted and, upon controlling for covariates, it was found to be statistically significant (β = −2.825, p<0.05, 95% CI −5.300 to −0.351). Conclusion There is a negative correlation between HRQoL and polypharmacy in hypertensive patients. This is especially evident in the physical aspect, as can be inferred from the Physical Component Scores attained in the study. A smaller but still significant negative correlation is seen in the mental component as well. Hence, a change of policy is indicated to idealize prescriptions and physicians must be vigilant about inappropriate polypharmacy.