Carga sedativa na farmacoterapia domiciliar de idosos

Abstract

To determine the sedative load in the pharmacotherapy used at home by older patients admitted to hospital. This is a cross-sectional study developed in a teaching hospital. The study’s dependent variable was the sedative load. The measurement of sedative activity was performed according to sedative load model adapted by Taipale et al. (2011). The sedative load was calculated by summing the individual score of each drug used by the elderly at home. The independent variables were: sex, age, comorbidities, polypharmacy, fall and hospitalization in the last year. Univariate and descriptive analysis were performed. A total of 42 (22.9%) older patients used at least one medication that contributed to the sedative load. Among these drugs, the most frequent were antidepressants (n=24; 57.1%) and antiepileptics (n=11; 26.2%), wherein clonazepam, amitriptyline and nortriptyline the most prescribed agents. There was a statistically significant positive association (p<0,05) among sedative load and polypharmacy, number of health problems ≥5, depression, dementia, heart failure, cancer, and fall in the last year. The use of drugs with sedative properties at home by older patients is common.