Medication-related Problems in the Elderly

Medication-related problems are common among elderly patients. Polypharmacy, the effect of taking multiple medications for coexisting medical conditions at the same time, is one of the major issues in the elderly that significantly increases the risk of drug-related problems. Medications frequently prescribed to this group of patients, including cardiovascular agents, benzodiazepines, antibiotics, anticoagulants, hypoglycemics, diuretics, opioid, and nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, are also the ones commonly involved in drugedrug interactions and adverse drug reactions. In addition, the complexity of multiple medications can hinder drug adherence in elderly patients with cognitive decline, resulting in medication ineffectiveness or underdosage 1 . In order to solve this problem, the assistance of information and communications technology (ICT) to identify patients at risk of drug cross-reactions and to enhance medication compliance has increased rapidly in recent years. In a review article by Granger and Bosworth 2 , the results from several clinical trials of technology-based interventions for medication adherence were promising. The combination of pharmaceutical database, health care program, and platform of communication technology can have a great effect on medication safety and efficacy. There are increasingly more opportunities for researchers to investigate the quality of health care based on the implementation of communication technologies and the growing influence of mobile devices globally.