Polypharmacy and Potentially Inappropriate Medications in Stroke Rehabilitation: Prevalence and Impact

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Polypharmacy and Potentially Inappropriate Medications in Stroke Rehabilitation: Prevalence and Impact

Matsumoto A,

Yoshimura Y,

Nagano F,

Bise T,

Kido Y,

Shimazu S,

Shiraishi A

Preprint from Research Square, 30 Nov 2021
DOI: 10.21203/rs.3.rs-1012014/v1 PPR: PPR426739 

Preprint

This article is a preprint. It may not have been peer reviewed.

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Abstract 

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Background:

Evidence is scarce regarding the polypharmacy and potentially inappropriate medications (PIMs) in rehabilitation medicine.

 

Aim

To investigate the prevalence and impact on outcomes of polypharmacy and PIMs in stroke rehabilitation.

 

Methods

A retrospective cohort study was conducted with 849 older inpatients after stroke.Polypharmacy was defined as six or more medications, and PIMs were defined based on Beers criteria 2019. Study outcomes included Functional Independence Measure (FIM)-motor, FIM-cognitive, energy intake, dysphagia, length of hospital stay and the rate of home discharge. To consider the impact of pharmacotherapy during rehabilitation, multivariate analyses were used to determine whether the presence of polypharmacy or PIMs at discharge was associated with outcomes.

 

Results

After enrollment, 361 patients (mean age 78.3 ± 7.7 years; 49.3% male) were analyzed. Polypharmacy was observed in 43.8% and 62.9% of patients, and any PIMs were observed 64.8% and 65.4% of patients at admission and discharge, respectively. The most frequently prescribed PIMs included antipsychotics, benzodiazepines, and proton pump inhibitors. Polypharmacy was negatively associated with FIM-motor score (β = -0.072, P = 0.017), FIM-cognitive score (β = -0.077, P = 0.011), energy intake (β = -0.147, P = 0.004), and home discharge (OR: 0.499; 95% CI: 0.280, 0.802; P = 0.015). PIMs were negatively associated with energy intake (β = -0.066, P = 0.042) and home discharge (OR: 0.452; 95% CI: 0.215, 0.756; P = 0.005).

Conclusions

Polypharmacy and PIMs are commonly found among older patients undergoing stroke rehabilitation. Moreover, polypharmacy and PIMs are negatively associated with outcomes.