| Popis: |
Background The number of elderly diabetic patients is increasing rapidly with the aggravation of population aging. The coexistence of multiple conditions and polypharmacy are common in elderly diabetic patients. Strengthening clinically rational drug use can effectively reduce the incidence of adverse drug events and improve outcomes in these patients. Objective To understand the characteristics and patterns of polypharmacy including hypoglycemic, antihypertensive, lipid-lowering, antiplatelet agents in elderly patients with type 2 diabetes, so as to provide a reference for promoting rational medication use. Methods This study retrospectively selected 240 elderly inpatients with type 2 diabetes who were hospitalized in Department of Endocrinology, the Second Affiliated Hospital of Xi'an Jiaotong University from April 1, 2020 to March 31, 2022 by cluster sampling method in April 2022. The drugs used during hospitalization and post-discharge medication regimens were investigated. Descriptive analysis was used to analyze the treatment regimens of hypoglycemic, antihypertensive, lipid-regulating and antiplatelet. Results On average, the participants had (13.93±3.12) diagnoses at discharge, (16.48±5.41) kinds of medications during hospitalization, and (8.21±2.46) kinds of long-term medications after discharge. The rate of polypharmacy after discharge reached 89.2% (214/240). After discharge, 216 cases (90.0%) received hypoglycemic treatment, among whom 44.9% (97/216) used single drug therapy, and 58.3% (126/216) were treated with insulin. One hundred and eighty-three cases (76.2%) were treated with antihypertensive therapy, including 44.3% (81/183) with single drug therapy and 79.2% (145/183) with calcium channel blockers. One hundred and eighty-seven cases (77.9%) received lipid-regulation therapy, and 83.4% (156/187) of them received atorvastatin. One hundred and seventeen cases (48.7%) used antiplatelet drugs, among whom 77.8% (91/117) used aspirin. Eighty-four cases (35.0%) received hypoglycemic, antihypertensive, lipid-regulating and antiplatelet therapies. Conclusion Polypharmacy is common in elderly patients with type 2 diabetes, including hypoglycemic, antihypertensive, lipid-regulating, antiplatelet and other therapies, which indicates that they have received pre-treatment relatively comprehensive condition evaluation by medical workers. Although the rate of comprehensive management is high in this group, there are still some potential risks of adverse drug events due to irrational use of some drugs alone or in combination. |
