29/11/2018
~ GETTING ALL MIXED UP: TROUBLE WITH POLYPHARMACY ~
As people get OLDER, so do the COMPLEXITIES of health and medication. A range of conditions may require multiple medications, with different doses and timing. Things can easily get COMPLICATED.
Quoted: "Common definitions of polypharmacy are the use of FIVE, SIX OR MORE concomitant drugs, or perhaps more to the point, "use of a potentially INAPPROPRIATE drug."
A study led by Dr. Dima Qato, Ph.D., from the University of Illinois at Chicago College of Pharmacy, found that, in 2005-2006, over 50 percent of adults in the US aged 57-85 years were taking five or more medications, whether prescription, over-the-counter (OTC) remedies, or dietary supplements.
Around 30 percent of people surveyed were using five or more prescription drugs, and over 58 percent were taking at least one medication that they did not need."
I cant possibly be sure, but I think the numbers in Tanzania would be more than those in US.
Quoted again: "PEOPLE WITH COMPLEX MEDICAL NEEDS MIGHT NEED A RANGE OF MEDICATIONS, OR THEY MAY TAKE ONE DRUG TO COUNTER THE ADVERSE EFFECTS OF ANOTHER.
HOWEVER, INAPPROPRIATE USE OF SEVERAL MEDICINES CAN BE BOTH WASTEFUL AND DANGEROUS.
ACCORDING TO HEALTH RESEARCH FUNDING, POLYPHARMACY IS RESPONSIBLE FOR 28 PERCENT OF ALL HOSPITAL ADMISSIONS, AND IT IS THE FIFTH LEADING CAUSE OF DEATH IN THE U.S."
One of the conclusion drawn from this study was to "inform all your doctors and pharmacist about all the medications and supplement you use. Before you purchase or start taking a new medication or supplement, make sure it is safe to take with all the medications your are currently taking."
Read more at MedicalNewsToday on http://goo.gl/u1qt7C (article publish date: 11/05/2016)