07.06.2018

Meta-analysis of Interventions to Reduce Adverse Drug Reactions in Older Adults

Adverse drug reactions (ADRs) are defined as “a response to a drug that is noxious and unintended and occurs at doses normally used in man…” and are the source of nearly 9% of hospital admissions in older adults according to a 2017 European Journal of Clinical Pharmacology meta-analysis. Acknowledging this ever growing problem, the objective of a study published in the Journal of the American Geriatric Society was to examine the impact of interventions to optimize medication use on ADRs in older adults. Pharmacist-led studies that include a core component of medication review with a number of structured methods to identify drug-related problems were associated with a 35% reduction in odds of ADRs.

 Link to: J Am Geriatr Soc (6/2018)
(Open access with free Medscape site registration)