Polypharmacy and self-medication among older adults in Indian urban communities—a cross-sectional study
Abstract Older adults are vulnerable to unsafe medication practices. This cross-sectional study estimated the prevalence and factors of polypharmacy and self-medication among 600 older adults from six Indian cities. The updated Screening Tool of Older Persons’ Prescriptions and Screening Tool to Ale...
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2025-02-01
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| author | Saibal Das Pavithra Gnanavel Shalini Smanla Anku Moni Saikia Shilpi Mishra Shweta Khare S. Arun Murugan Vadanere Nidhi Prakash Parimita Roychoudhury Ishteyaque Ahmad Vishal Diwan J. Rajesh K. Sathish Kumar Jugal Kishore Namita Srivastava Sabrina Yasmin Mahmuda Nasrin Rinku Borah Mandeep Sarma Basistha Chetanjit Baruah Manoj Kalita Shambo Samrat Samajdar Jerin Jose Cherian Ashish Pathak Samiran Panda Santanu Kumar Tripathi Cecilia Stålsby Lundborg |
| author_facet | Saibal Das Pavithra Gnanavel Shalini Smanla Anku Moni Saikia Shilpi Mishra Shweta Khare S. Arun Murugan Vadanere Nidhi Prakash Parimita Roychoudhury Ishteyaque Ahmad Vishal Diwan J. Rajesh K. Sathish Kumar Jugal Kishore Namita Srivastava Sabrina Yasmin Mahmuda Nasrin Rinku Borah Mandeep Sarma Basistha Chetanjit Baruah Manoj Kalita Shambo Samrat Samajdar Jerin Jose Cherian Ashish Pathak Samiran Panda Santanu Kumar Tripathi Cecilia Stålsby Lundborg |
| author_sort | Saibal Das |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract Older adults are vulnerable to unsafe medication practices. This cross-sectional study estimated the prevalence and factors of polypharmacy and self-medication among 600 older adults from six Indian cities. The updated Screening Tool of Older Persons’ Prescriptions and Screening Tool to Alert to Right Treatment criteria (version 3) were used. Knowledge, attitudes, and reported practices regarding self-medication were assessed. Descriptive statistics, binary logistic regression, and multivariable analysis were used. The prevalence of polypharmacy was 33.7% (95% CI 29.9–37.6%), with significant associations to multiple comorbidities [adjusted odds ratio (aOR) 2.5 (95% CI 1.1–4.1)], recent transition of care [aOR 3.3 (95% CI 1.4–5.7)], and recent hospitalization [aOR 4.6 (95% CI 2–7.7)]. The proportions of prescriptions with potentially inappropriate medications and potential prescribing omissions were 28.8% (95% CI 25.2–32.6%) and 20.3% (95% CI 17.2–23.8%), respectively. The prevalence of self-medication was 19.7% (95% CI 16.6–23.1%), associated with factors, such as staying alone [aOR 4.5 (95% CI 2.4–6.6)], multiple comorbidities [aOR 3 (95% CI 1.4–6.7)], and recent hospitalization [aOR 4.8 (95% CI 1.5–8)]. Among those who self-medicated, 65.3% lacked knowledge of self-medication, 50% did not comprehend the risks, and 40.7% reported unsafe self-medication practices. The findings emphasize interventions’ necessity for promoting safe medication use in older adults. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-62874ade38d243ea98ac133d2d125ec1 |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 2045-2322 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-02-01 |
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| spelling | doaj-art-62874ade38d243ea98ac133d2d125ec12025-02-09T12:31:08ZengNature PortfolioScientific Reports2045-23222025-02-0115111310.1038/s41598-024-84627-2Polypharmacy and self-medication among older adults in Indian urban communities—a cross-sectional studySaibal Das0Pavithra Gnanavel1Shalini Smanla2Anku Moni Saikia3Shilpi Mishra4Shweta Khare5S. Arun Murugan6Vadanere Nidhi Prakash7Parimita Roychoudhury8Ishteyaque Ahmad9Vishal Diwan10J. Rajesh11K. Sathish Kumar12Jugal Kishore13Namita Srivastava14Sabrina Yasmin15Mahmuda Nasrin16Rinku Borah17Mandeep Sarma Basistha18Chetanjit Baruah19Manoj Kalita20Shambo Samrat Samajdar21Jerin Jose Cherian22Ashish Pathak23Samiran Panda24Santanu Kumar Tripathi25Cecilia Stålsby Lundborg26Department of Global Public Health, Karolinska InstitutetDepartment of Community Medicine, Government Medical CollegeDepartment of Community Medicine, Vardhman Mahavir Medical College and Safdarjung HospitalDepartment of Community Medicine, Dhubri Medical College and HospitalDepartment of Pharmacology, Netaji Subhas Medical College and HospitalDepartment of Global Public Health, Karolinska InstitutetDepartment of Community Medicine, Government Medical CollegeDepartment of Community Medicine, Vardhman Mahavir Medical College and Safdarjung HospitalDepartment of Community Medicine, Dhubri Medical College and HospitalDepartment of Pharmacology, Netaji Subhas Medical College and HospitalDepartment of Global Public Health, Karolinska InstitutetDepartment of Community Medicine, Kilpauk Medical CollegeDepartment of Community Medicine, Government Medical CollegeDepartment of Community Medicine, Vardhman Mahavir Medical College and Safdarjung HospitalDepartment of Community Medicine, Vardhman Mahavir Medical College and Safdarjung HospitalDepartment of Community Medicine, Dhubri Medical College and HospitalDepartment of Community Medicine, Dhubri Medical College and HospitalDepartment of Community Medicine, Dhubri Medical College and HospitalDepartment of Pharmacology, Nagaon Medical College HospitalDepartment of Community Medicine, Tinsukia Medical College and HospitalIndian Council of Medical Research - Centre for Aging and Mental HealthDepartment of Pharmacology, JNM Medical College and HospitalDepartment of Global Public Health, Karolinska InstitutetDepartment of Global Public Health, Karolinska InstitutetIndian Council of Medical ResearchJagannath Gupta Institute of Medical Sciences and HospitalDepartment of Global Public Health, Karolinska InstitutetAbstract Older adults are vulnerable to unsafe medication practices. This cross-sectional study estimated the prevalence and factors of polypharmacy and self-medication among 600 older adults from six Indian cities. The updated Screening Tool of Older Persons’ Prescriptions and Screening Tool to Alert to Right Treatment criteria (version 3) were used. Knowledge, attitudes, and reported practices regarding self-medication were assessed. Descriptive statistics, binary logistic regression, and multivariable analysis were used. The prevalence of polypharmacy was 33.7% (95% CI 29.9–37.6%), with significant associations to multiple comorbidities [adjusted odds ratio (aOR) 2.5 (95% CI 1.1–4.1)], recent transition of care [aOR 3.3 (95% CI 1.4–5.7)], and recent hospitalization [aOR 4.6 (95% CI 2–7.7)]. The proportions of prescriptions with potentially inappropriate medications and potential prescribing omissions were 28.8% (95% CI 25.2–32.6%) and 20.3% (95% CI 17.2–23.8%), respectively. The prevalence of self-medication was 19.7% (95% CI 16.6–23.1%), associated with factors, such as staying alone [aOR 4.5 (95% CI 2.4–6.6)], multiple comorbidities [aOR 3 (95% CI 1.4–6.7)], and recent hospitalization [aOR 4.8 (95% CI 1.5–8)]. Among those who self-medicated, 65.3% lacked knowledge of self-medication, 50% did not comprehend the risks, and 40.7% reported unsafe self-medication practices. The findings emphasize interventions’ necessity for promoting safe medication use in older adults.https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-024-84627-2Older adultsPolypharmacyPotentially inappropriate medications (PIMs)Potential prescribing omissions (PPOs)Self-medicationScreening tool of older persons’ prescriptions and screening tool to alert to right treatment (STOPP-START) |
| spellingShingle | Saibal Das Pavithra Gnanavel Shalini Smanla Anku Moni Saikia Shilpi Mishra Shweta Khare S. Arun Murugan Vadanere Nidhi Prakash Parimita Roychoudhury Ishteyaque Ahmad Vishal Diwan J. Rajesh K. Sathish Kumar Jugal Kishore Namita Srivastava Sabrina Yasmin Mahmuda Nasrin Rinku Borah Mandeep Sarma Basistha Chetanjit Baruah Manoj Kalita Shambo Samrat Samajdar Jerin Jose Cherian Ashish Pathak Samiran Panda Santanu Kumar Tripathi Cecilia Stålsby Lundborg Polypharmacy and self-medication among older adults in Indian urban communities—a cross-sectional study Scientific Reports Older adults Polypharmacy Potentially inappropriate medications (PIMs) Potential prescribing omissions (PPOs) Self-medication Screening tool of older persons’ prescriptions and screening tool to alert to right treatment (STOPP-START) |
| title | Polypharmacy and self-medication among older adults in Indian urban communities—a cross-sectional study |
| title_full | Polypharmacy and self-medication among older adults in Indian urban communities—a cross-sectional study |
| title_fullStr | Polypharmacy and self-medication among older adults in Indian urban communities—a cross-sectional study |
| title_full_unstemmed | Polypharmacy and self-medication among older adults in Indian urban communities—a cross-sectional study |
| title_short | Polypharmacy and self-medication among older adults in Indian urban communities—a cross-sectional study |
| title_sort | polypharmacy and self medication among older adults in indian urban communities a cross sectional study |
| topic | Older adults Polypharmacy Potentially inappropriate medications (PIMs) Potential prescribing omissions (PPOs) Self-medication Screening tool of older persons’ prescriptions and screening tool to alert to right treatment (STOPP-START) |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-024-84627-2 |
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