Suboptimal prescribing in elderly outpatients: potentially harmful drug-drug and drug-disease combinations.

Objectives: To assess the prevalence and correlates of potentially harmful drug-drug combinations and drug-disease combinations prescribed for elderly patients at outpatient settings.

Design: Retrospective analysis of the 1995-2000 National Ambulatory Medical Care Survey (NAMCS) and the National Hospital Ambulatory Medical Care Survey (NHAMCS).

Setting: Physician offices and hospital outpatient departments.

Participants: Outpatient visits by patients aged 65 and older in the NAMCS and NHAMCS (n=70,203).

Measurements: Incidences of six drug-drug combinations and 50 drug-disease combinations that can place elderly patients at risk for adverse events according to expert consensus panels.

Results: Overall, 0.74% (95% confidence interval (CI)=0.65-0.83) of visits with two or more prescriptions had at least one inappropriate drug-drug combination, and 2.58% (95% CI=2.44-2.72) of visits with at least one prescription had one or more inappropriate drug-disease combinations. Of visits with a prescription of warfarin, 6.60% (95% CI=5.46-7.74) were prescribed a drug with potentially harmful interaction. Of patients with benign prostatic hypertrophy, 4.06% (95% CI=3.06-5.06) had at least one of six drugs that should be avoided. The number of drugs prescribed is most predictive of inappropriate drug-drug and drug-disease combinations.

Conclusion: Potentially harmful drug-drug and drug-disease combinations occur in various degrees in outpatient care in the elderly population. Targeting combinations such as those involving warfarin that are high in prevalence and potential harm offers a practical approach to improving prescribing and patient safety.