A new Cochrane EPOC (Effective Practice and Organisation of Care) Review, led by Dr Susan Patterson, has examined "the ways that healthcare professionals can improve the use of suitable medicines for older people."

Christen Brownlee, of Health Behavior New Service, has interviewed Dr Patterson who stated that "inappropriate polypharmacy contributes to around one in 10 hospital admissions. While many patients appropriately take several drugs to treat the variety of medical problems that can arise with aging," she explains, "some are inappropriately prescribed combinations of drugs intended to treat not only the original problem, but side effects from those treatments, and even side effects from side effect drugs."

See the full news article on the Health Behavior News Service site.

See the Cochrane Review Interventions to improve the appropriate use of polypharmacy for older people in The Cochrane Library.