Up to 35% of older people who live in their homes and take drugs suffer any adverse reaction.

-one of every three hospitalizations of people older than 65 years are due to reactions or adverse effects of medicines

-adverse reactions to drugs are a problem frequent, but unknown, that most of the drugs have not been adequately studied in older people

-by a Geriatrics care reduces the risk of adverse reactions

Madrid, April 2012.- chronic diseases accumulate over the life and it is common that when a person becomes greaterhave to take several medications to control them. That is why many older people have to take many medicines, something which is known as polimedicación (more than four drugs a day). The polimedicación promotes the emergence of forgetfulness, confusion, adverse reactions, interactions, etc., which ultimately hinder the completion of treatment, decrease its effectiveness with the unwanted result of increasing the number of consultations and hospital admissions for drugs associated adverse events.

A recent study conducted in six European hospitals (including one Madrid), shows that 97 per cent of older persons entered took any drug, with an average of six drugs per person. 58 Percent took six or more drugs and 14 per cent took eleven or more drugs.

The Spanish society of Geriatrics and Gerontology, SEGG, recalls that the risk of adverse reactions to drugs increases with age, as a result of the changes related to aging, the sum of diseases and disabilities and other reasons. In addition, most of the drugs have not been studied properly in older people. This last fact is so serious that there is an initiative at European level to increase the participation of the elderly in clinical trials that has published a Charter of rights of the elderly. For its part, the European Union has created a few months ago a group of experts in medicine in geriatrics with the aim of improving the quality of the information available on the use of drugs in the elderly.

The risk of adverse reactions

Serious adverse reactions to drugs are a common problem, but unknown. Estimated that up 35 per cent of the elderly living in their homes and take drugs suffer any adverse reaction, and one of every three income in hospitals of persons age 65 and over are at least in part, due to reactions or adverse drug effects ”, says doctor Alfonso Cruz Jentoft, geriatrics of Hospital Universitario Ramón y Cajal in Madrid.

Adverse reactions have 5 percent of possibilities appear when consumed a single drug and almost 100% of possibilities appear when taking more than ten. In addition, some of these reactions causes falls and hip fractures (that generate a high degree of dependence in the elderly).

Improve the quality of prescription

Most of the drugs take elders have been prescribed by a physician, so it is essential to improve the quality of the prescription, because insists the doctor Cruz Jentoft, the improper prescription of drugs for the geriatric population is a matter of public health ”.

A drug is considered adequate or appropriate when it presents clear evidence supporting its use in a given indication, is well tolerated in most patients and is cost-effective. In addition, prescribing appropriate elders should take into account the patient’s individual life expectancy and promote the use of drugs with favourable benefit/risk ratio ”, continuous.

The Geriatrics has a vital role to avoid this

Is known for some time that the a Geriatrics care reduces the risk of adverse reactions ”, Alfonso Cruz explains. Geriatrics, thanks to its integrated vision and holistic view of the patient, is able to coordinate, reconcile and even reduce the medication, making a safer prescription for the patient.

Recently, tools are being developed in Europe to detect prescriptions which may be inappropriate, among which stand out the STOPP-START criteria, promoted by the European society of Geriatrics. Clear aims to improve prescribing and avoid the damage that can make medications when used wrong.

Tips of the SEGG to reduce the risks of adverse reactions

What can older people and their families do to reduce these risk?, is basically common sense measures:

-use drugs that prescribe you following carefully the instructions that have been given.

-not used or prepared herbal medicines by your account.

-ask your doctor or pharmacist if there are doubts about how to use them.

-warning immediately of any changes in health that can be related to drugs.

The SEGG insists that it should be remembered that many adverse reactions are little specific digestive problems (falls, cuts stress, confusion, mental, lack of forces or worsening of an illness that was previously stable) so it is important to be especially attentive to them.

And finally remember that medications allow us to live longer and better, but they are not safe. Let’s learn to use them.

On the SEGG

The Spanish society of Geriatrics and Gerontology is a large and active European societies. Currently has more than 2,300 members of multidisciplinary areas: doctors (specialists in geriatrics, primary care, etc), sociologists, graduates in nursing, social workers, pedagogues, psychologists, occupational therapists, physiotherapists, geographers, economists, architects, pharmacists …

for the SEGG, older persons are its main raison d ’ être and for this reason his work sets two main lines Action: universalization of the geriatric care specializing in order to avoid inequalities and monitoring of the law of the unit ”.