Analysis of outpatient prescription medications in the elderly

VernacularTitle:门诊老年患者用药情况分析
Author: Xuelin SUN ¹ ; Lin MU ; Di CHEN ; Ling TAN ; Yufei FENG ; Xin HU
Author Information

1. 100730,北京医院国家老年医学研究中心药学部
Keywords: Fees,pharmaceutical; Outpatients
From: Chinese Journal of Geriatrics 2018;37(5):561-564
CountryChina
Language:Chinese
Abstract: Objective To understand the patterns of outpatient prescription medications in the hospital's elderly patients.Methods Data for all outpatient prescriptions at our hospital written for seniors (≥60 years old) between 2013 and 2014 were collected and medications were ranked based on the price.The top 100 medications were chosen for analysis.Results The most expensive and most frequently prescribed three therapeutic groups were drugs for cardiovascular,endocrine & metabolic,and bone & joint disorders.Medication numbers and prices varied among different age groups,with the 60-64 and 75-79 groups representing the highest numbers and prices.The average price (460.3 yuan) per prescription for male patients was higher than that (399.3 yuan) for female patients.Conclusions The cost of prescription drugs in elderly patients is higher than in middle-aged patients,with drugs for non communicable chronic diseases accounting for most of the expenses.Polypharmacy is also a prominent issue.Prescriptions for chronic illnesses in the elderly should follow well established guidelines and appropriately managed.