Appropriate knowledge of the indications for medications in use among older individuals assisted in the Jornada Científica dos Acadêmicos de Farmácia-Bioquímica

This study aimed to identify variables associated with the appropriate recall of indications and the drug classes that represented the most unmatching medications (i.e., when the individual who used it had not reported any illness that matched its indications). Community-dwelling individuals aged ≥60 years using ≥1 medication, from Santa Cruz da Esperança-SP, Brazil, were home-interviewed. Logistic regression models were used to evaluate the association between the appropriate recall of the indications for all medications in use and the following: gender, age, education, individual income, living arrangement, self-perceived health, and medication number, administration, payment, and identification. Medications whose indications were inappropriately recalled were classified as matching or unmatching. One hundred seventeen individuals used an average of 5.1 (standard deviation, 3.3) medications. Sixty-one (52.1%) appropriately recalled all indications. The appropriate recall of all indications was negatively associated with the number of medications in use (e.g., individuals taking 5-6 medications were 25 times less likely to appropriately recall all indications than those taking 1-2). Antithrombotic, acid-related disorder and psychoanaleptic classes showed greater frequencies of unmatching than matching medications. Therefore, counseling the elderly about drug indications should focus on those using ≥3 medications and/or antithrombotic, acid-related disorder, and psychoanaleptic agents.

本研究旨在识别与药物适应证正确回忆相关的变量，以及占比最高的匹配不符药物类别（即用药者未报告过与该药物适应证相符疾病的情况）。研究对象为巴西圣保罗州圣克鲁斯-达埃斯佩兰萨市居住于社区、年龄≥60岁且正在使用≥1种药物的个体，通过家庭访谈收集数据。本研究采用logistic回归（Logistic Regression）模型，评估当前所用全部药物的适应证正确回忆情况与以下因素的关联：性别、年龄、受教育程度、个人收入、居住状况、自我感知健康状况，以及用药数量、给药方式、付费方式与药物标识情况。对适应证回忆错误的药物，分为匹配类与不符类。共计117名个体参与研究，其平均用药数量为5.1种（标准差3.3）。其中61名（52.1%）个体能够正确回忆所有药物的适应证。所有药物适应证均能正确回忆的情况与当前用药数量呈负相关：例如，使用5~6种药物的个体，其正确回忆全部适应证的概率仅为使用1~2种药物个体的1/25。抗血栓药、酸相关性疾病治疗药及精神兴奋药类别中，不符药物的出现频率高于匹配药物。因此，针对老年人的药物适应证宣教应聚焦于使用≥3种药物的人群，以及使用抗血栓药、酸相关性疾病治疗药与精神兴奋药的个体。