Description:
<jats:title>Abstract</jats:title>
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<jats:title>Background</jats:title>
<jats:p>Literature findings on the association between polypharmacy and mortality in older people are not consistent. Appropriate tools, making use of linkages, are helpful to investigate this further.</jats:p>
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<jats:title>Methods</jats:title>
<jats:p>Data of participants of the Belgian Health Interview Survey 2013 aged ≥ 65 years (n = 1950) were linked with billing data and 5 year’s mortality follow-up information. Polypharmacy was defined as concomitant use of ≥ 5 medicines in the past 24 hours or ≥ 5 recent prescriptions of reimbursed medicines. The impact of polypharmacy on mortality was assessed through mortality rate ratios (MRR) from a Poisson regression model adjusting for gender, age, multimorbidity, functional limitations and health care use, and including interactions.</jats:p>
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<jats:title>Results</jats:title>
<jats:p>The prevalence of polypharmacy was 38,3%. Age and disability status were effect modifiers in the association between polypharmacy and mortality. Whereas polypharmacy was significantly associated with mortality among people aged 65-79 years (MRR 2.52; 95% CI 1.67-3.80), this was not so for the 80 + (MRR 1.46; 95% CI 0.93-2.29). Polypharmacy was a mortality predictor among people with no/moderate functional limitations (MRR 2,29; 95% CI 1.61-3.25), but not for those with severe functional limitations (MRR 1,22; 95% CI 0.67-2.34).</jats:p>
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<jats:title>Conclusions</jats:title>
<jats:p>By linking health interview survey, billing and mortality data further insights can be gained on the association between polypharmacy and mortality.</jats:p>
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<jats:title>Key messages</jats:title>
<jats:p>A critical evaluation of polypharmacy in older people below 80 years and in people without severe functional limitations may reduce mortality in these population groups.</jats:p>
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