Prevalence, predictors and clinical impact of potentially inappropriate prescriptions in hospital‐discharged older patients: A prospective study

AIM: Potentially inappropriate prescriptions (PIP) have been highly reported in older patients, but few studies have investigated their association with adverse clinical outcomes. The present study aimed to evaluate the prevalence and predictors of PIP in hospital-discharged older adults, and to explore the association of PIP with death and rehospitalization. METHODS: We carried out a multicenter prospective cohort study on hospital-discharged patients aged ≥65 years. Each patient underwent a comprehensive geriatric assessment, and the prevalence of PIP was obtained by applying Beers Criteria 2015 to discharge documents. Telephone follow up was carried out at 6 months. RESULTS: The prevalence of PIP was 63%, and was associated with psychiatric-behavioral disorders (OR 1.64), the number of daily taken medications (OR 1.08) and long-term care discharge (OR 1.91), whereas better functional performance was protective (OR 0.93). Neither the presence nor the number of PIP were associated with rehospitalization or mortality at 6 months. However, insulin sliding scale (OR 4.97) and use of drugs inappropriate in heart failure (OR 4.64) were associated with an increased risk of rehospitalization, whereas prescription of digoxin ≥0.125 mg/daily (OR 1.77) and antipsychotics (OR 1.65) were associated with a higher risk of mortality. CONCLUSIONS: Among older hospital-discharged patients, we documented a high prevalence of PIP that was significantly associated with polytherapy, the presence of psychiatric-behavioral disorders and discharge to long-term care facilities. Although the presence and the number of PIP were not associated with adverse outcomes, some specific inappropriate prescriptions were associated with a higher risk of hospital readmission and death. Geriatr Gerontol Int 2018; 18: 561-568.