Volume 14, Issue 33, January - June, 2020

Polypharmacy in Elderly Patients with Hypertension

Agarwal N¹, Agarwal S^2♦

¹MS, St. George’s University, Grenada
²Medical Director, Agarwal Health Center, 52 Richard Road, Edison, NJ 08820 USA

^♦Corresponding author
Medical Director, Agarwal Health Center, 52 Richard Road, Edison, NJ 08820 USA, E-mail: usacardiologist@gmail.com

ABSTRACT

Polypharmacy is common in the elderly. It continues to increase, despite its known association with increased morbidity and mortality. It increases the risk of inappropriate use of medications, nonadherence, and adverse effects. Patients with polypharmacy also experience a decline in the activities of daily living. It also raises health care costs. Elderly hypertensives are at particular risk for polypharmacy. This stems from the need for multiple anti-hypertensive drugs for proper control of hypertension in this population, complicated by a host of co-morbid conditions such as arthritis, heart disease, cancer, and diabetes mellitus – all requiring concomitant treatment. Health care professionals should be congnizant of the risks of polypharmacy. Physicians need to monitor patient both prescription and nonprescription drug treatment periodically and educate both patients and their families on their proper usage.

Keywords: Polypharmacy, Adverse drug effects, Hypertension, Elderly

Drug Discovery, 2020, 14(33), 100-105

PDF