Development and validation of a score to assess risk of adverse drug reactions among in-hospital patients 65 years or older: the GerontoNet ADR risk score.

Background: The aim of the present study was to develop and validate a method of identifying elderly patients who are at increased risk for an adverse drug reaction (ADR).

Methods: Data from the Gruppo Italiano di Farmacoepidemiologia nell'Anziano (Italian Group of Pharmacoepidemiology in the Elderly) were used to develop an ADR risk score. Variables associated with ADRs were identified by a stepwise logistic regression analysis and used to compute the ADR risk score.