Abstract
The elderly may run a special risk of anticholinergic drug toxicity due to polypharmacy. A 30% sample of the prescription records of 330,000 elderly individuals enrolled in the Pennsylvania Pharmaceutical Assistance Contract for the Elderly (PACE) Program during the 1985-86 year were analyzed for the prevalence of concurrent use of anticholinergic drugs by residential status, age, sex, and medicine use. A total of 393 generic drugs and generic drug compounds with anticholinergic properties were identified in 31 therapeutic categories (AHFS) accounting for 547 drug product names. Anticholinergic drugs constitute 8.8% of PACE claims volume. There were 6,703 persons, 8.7% of the community sample and 20% of the nursing home sample, that used two or more anticholinergic drugs. Total medicine use was the strongest predictor of concurrent anticholinergic use.
Original language | English (US) |
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Pages (from-to) | 41-54 |
Number of pages | 14 |
Journal | Journal of Geriatric Drug Therapy |
Volume | 5 |
Issue number | 2 |
State | Published - 1990 |
All Science Journal Classification (ASJC) codes
- Geriatrics and Gerontology
- Pharmacology (medical)