[Anti-hypertensive drugs prescribed to the elderly. Multicenter study at the hospital admission of 631 patients aged 70 plus years].

The anti-hypertensive treatment of 631 patients 70 years old and over was evaluated at the time of their hospitalization in 12 Internal Medicine departments in the western Paris suburbs, in May and June 1990. 49.6 +/- 3.9% received no such therapy; 30.3 +/- 3.6% were being treated for hypertension (group 1); 8.7 +/- 2.2% were taking anti-hypertensive drugs for poorly specified reasons (group 2); 11.4 +/- 2.5% were under such treatment for another reason. In groups 1 or 1 + 2, the most frequently prescribed medications were, in decreasing order: diuretics, calcium channel blockers, converting enzyme inhibitors, beta-blockers or central inhibitors. In the oldest patients, the beta-blockers were prescribed less and converting enzyme inhibitors more. More than half of the patients in groups 1 + 2 were taking a single drug. The most frequently prescribed combined therapy was diuretic + converting enzyme inhibitor. Our results seem to indicate that the prescription modalities depended, for the most part, upon an associated or suspected pathology, notably cardiac insufficiency.