Background
Methods
Study population and design
Ethical statement
Clinical and biological parameters
Polypharmacy
Exclusion criteria
Statistical analysis
Results
Selection procedure and characteristics of participants
Prevalence of polypharmacy
Frequency n (%) | 95% CI | |
---|---|---|
Any drug | 2947 (59.7) | (58.3–61.1) |
Polypharmacy (≥5 drugs) | 580 (11.8) | (10.9–12.7) |
Excessive polypharmacy (≥10 drugs) | 69 (1.4) | (1.1–1.8) |
Cardiovascular | 1843 (37.3) | (36.0–38.7) |
Antihypertensive drugs | 1327 (26.9) | (25.6–28.1) |
Angiotensin receptor blockers | 644 (13.0) | (12.1–14.0) |
Beta-blockers | 444 (9.0) | (8.2–9.8) |
Angiotensin converting enzyme inhibitors | 350 (7.1) | (6.4–7.8) |
Calcium channel blockers | 229 (4.6) | (4.1–5.3) |
Diuretics | 158 (3.2) | (2.7–3.7) |
Other | 81 (1.6) | (1.3–2.0) |
Hypolipidemic drugs | 1029 (20.8) | (19.7–22.0) |
Statins | 861 (17.4) | (16.4–18.5) |
Other hypolipidemic drugs | 219 (4.4) | (3.9–5.0) |
Antiplatelet drugs | 572 (11.6) | (10.7–12.5) |
Aspirin | 527 (10.7) | (9.8–11.6) |
Vitamin K antagonists | 108 (2.2) | (1.8–2.6) |
Psychiatric | 781 (15.8) | (14.8–16.9) |
Antidepressants | 516 (10.5) | (9.6–11.3) |
Anxiolytics | 243 (4.9) | (4.3–5.6) |
Hypnotics and sedatives | 230 (4.7) | (4.1–5.3) |
Antipsychotics | 54 (1.1) | (0.8–1.4) |
Analgesics | 657 (13.3) | (12.4–14.3) |
Anilides | 110 (2.2) | (1.8–2.7) |
Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs | 447 (9.1) | (8.3–9.9) |
Opioids | 61 (1.2) | (0.9–1.6) |
Vitamins and minerals | 616 (12.5) | (11.6–13.4) |
Gastro-intestinal Drugs | 469 (9.5) | (8.7–10.3) |
Antiacids | 351 (7.1) | (6.4–7.9) |
Drugs for constipation | 68 (1.4) | (1.1–1.7) |
Othera
| 114 (2.3) | (1.9–2.8) |
Antidiabetic drugs | 274 (5.6) | (4.9–6.2) |
Oral antidiabetics | 252 (5.1) | (4.5–5.8) |
Insulin | 59 (1.2) | (0.9–1.5) |
Determinants of polypharmacy
No (n = 4358) | Yes (n = 580) |
P-value | Multivariate | P-value for trend | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Gender | 0.973 | ||||
Woman | 2325 (53.4) | 309 (53.3) | 1 (ref.) | ||
Man | 2033 (46.7) | 271 (46.7) | 0.92 (0.75–1.12) | ||
Age (years) | 56.6 ± 10.1 | 66.0 ± 9.1 | <0.001 | ||
Age group (%) | <0.001 | <0.001 | |||
40–49 | 1359 (31.2) | 40 (6.9) | 1 (ref.) | ||
50–64 | 1970 (45.2) | 187 (32.2) | 2.90 (2.04–4.12) | ||
65–81 | 1029 (23.6) | 353 (60.9) | 10.3 (7.26–14.5) | ||
BMI categories (%) | <0.001 | <0.001 | |||
Normal + underweight | 2034 (46.7) | 125 (21.6) | 1 (ref.) | ||
Overweight | 1685 (38.7) | 247 (42.6) | 2.09 (1.65–2.66) | ||
Obese | 639 (14.7) | 208 (35.9) | 4.38 (3.39–5.66) | ||
Education (%) | <0.001 | 0.002 | |||
High | 995 (22.8) | 70 (12.1) | 1 (ref.) | ||
Middle | 1154 (26.5) | 124 (21.4) | 1.15 (0.83–1.58) | ||
Low | 2209 (50.7) | 386 (66.6) | 1.56 (1.17–2.07) | ||
Marital status (%) | 0.121 | ||||
Living alone | 1851 (42.5) | 266 (45.9) | 1 (ref.) | ||
Living in a couple | 2507 (57.5) | 314 (54.1) | 0.86 (0.71–1.05) | ||
Born in Switzerland (%) | 0.303 | ||||
No | 1621 (37.2) | 203 (35.0) | 1 (ref.) | ||
Yes | 2737 (62.8) | 377 (65.0) | 0.87 (0.72–1.06) | ||
Smoking status (%) | <0.001 | <0.001 | |||
Never | 1816 (41.7) | 192 (33.1) | 1 (ref.) | ||
Former | 1588 (36.4) | 271 (46.7) | 1.42 (1.14–1.75) | ||
Current | 954 (21.9) | 117 (20.2) | 1.63 (1.25–2.12) |