Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Epidemiologic Aspects

  • Chapter
  • First Online:
Drug Therapy for the Elderly

  • 1856 Accesses

Abstract

A common definition (World Health Organization 2011) describes elderly individuals as persons aged 65 and over. A previous definition given by the WHO even defined persons only 60 or more years old as elderly, but this cutoff is not generally accepted. In this context, it is necessary to discuss the definition of age. The definition of an calendarian cutoff for defined age groups merely depends on social consensus and not primarily on physiological changes that may occur even years before. Age-associated physiological changes in the endocrine system or in lens elasticity may start much earlier even in healthy subjects: between age 40 and age 45 for the endocrine system and during puberty for lens elasticity. A reliable and valid threshold value for significant changes in physiology cannot be calculated and applied due to a great variety of interindividual aging patterns and courses.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this chapter

Log in via an institution
eBook
USD 16.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as EPUB and PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
Softcover Book
USD 119.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Compact, lightweight edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Purchases are for personal use only

Institutional subscriptions

References

  • Atkin PA, Finnegan TP, Ogle SJ, Shenfield GM (1994) Functional ability of patients to manage medication packaging. A survey of geriatric inpatients. Age Ageing 23:113–116

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Baltes PB, Mayer KU (eds) (2001) The Berlin aging study, aging from 70 to 100. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge

    Google Scholar 

  • Baumgartner RN, Koehler KM, Gallagher D et al (1998) Epidemiology of sarcopenia among the elderly in New Mexico. Am J Epidemiol 147:755–763

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (2011) National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) III. http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/nhanes/databriefs/preuse.pdf. Accessed 31 Oct 2011

  • de Loyola Filho AI, Uchoa E, Lima-Costa MF (2006) Estudo epidemiológico de base populacional sobre uso de medicamentos entre idosos na Região Metropolitana de Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais, Brasil. Cad Saúde Pública Rio de Janeiro 22:2657–2667

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • de Winter LJM, Hoyng CB, Froeling PGAM, Meulendijks CFM, van der Wilt GJ (2004) Prevalence of remediable disability due to low vision among institutionalized elderly people. Gerontology 50:96–101

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Field TS, Gurwitz JH, Harrold LR et al (2004) Risk factors for adverse drug events among older adults in the ambulatory setting. J Am Geriatr Soc 52:1349–1354

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Filhoa JMC, Marcopitob LF, Castelob A (2004) Perfil de utilização de medicamentos por idosos em área urbana do Nordeste do Brasil. Rev Saude Publica 38:557–564

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Fried LP, Tangen CM, Walston J, Cardiovascular Health Study Collaborative Research Group et al (2001) Frailty in older adults: evidence for a phenotype. J Gerontol A Biol Sci Med Sci 56:M146–M156

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Gupta A (2008) Measurement scales used in elderly care. Radcliffe, Oxford

    Google Scholar 

  • Gurwitz JH, Field TS, Harrold LR et al (2003) Incidence and preventability of adverse drug events among older persons in the ambulatory setting. JAMA 289:1107–1116

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Harugeri A, Joseph J, Parthasarathi G, Ramesh M, Guido S (2010) Prescribing patterns and predictors of high-level polypharmacy in the elderly population: a prospective surveillance study from two teaching hospitals in India. Am J Geriatr Pharmacother 8:271–280

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Ioannidis JP, Lau J (2001) Completeness of safety reporting in randomized trials: an evaluation of 7 medical areas. JAMA 285:437–443

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Janssen I, Baumgartner RN, Ross R, Rosenberg IH, Roubenoff R (2004) Skeletal muscle cutpoints associated with elevated physical disability risk in older men and women. Am J Epidemiol 159:413–421

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Kaufman DW, Kelly JP, Rosenberg L, Anderson TE, Mitchell AA (2002) Recent patterns of medication use in the ambulatory adult population of the United States: the Slone survey. JAMA 287:337–344

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Kongkaew C, Noyce PR, Ashcroft DM (2008) Hospital admissions associated with adverse drug reactions: a systematic review of prospective observational studies. Ann Pharmacother 42:1017–1025

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Lawton MP, Brody EM (1969) Assessment of older people: selfmaintaining and instrumental activities of daily living. Gerontologist 9:179–186

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Lima-Costa MF, Barreto SM, Giatti L (2003) Condições de saúde, capacidade funcional, uso de serviços de saúde e gastos com medicamentos da população idosa brasileira: um estudo descritivo baseado na Pesquisa Nacional por Amostra de Domicílios. Cad Saúde Pública Rio de Janeiro 19:735–743

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Manesse CK, Derkx FHM, de Ridder MAJ, Man in’t Veld AJ, van der Cammen TJM (1997) Adverse drug reactions in elderly patients as contributing factor for hospital admission: cross sectional survey. BMJ 315:1057–1058

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Monette J, Gurwitz JH, Avorn J (1995) Epidemiology of adverse drug events in the nursing home setting. Drugs Aging 7:203–211

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Nikolaus T, Kruse W, Bach M, Specht-Leible N, Oster P, Schlierf G (1996) Elderly patients’ problems with medication. An inhospital and follow-up study. Eur J Clin Pharmacol 49:255–259

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Onder G, Petrovic M, Tangiisuran B et al (2010) Development and validation of a score to assess risk of adverse drug reactions among in-hospital patients 65 years or older: the GerontoNet ADR risk score. Arch Intern Med 170:1142–1148

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Ostchega Y, Harris TB, Hirsch R, Parsons VL, Kington R (2000) The prevalence of functional limitations and disability in older persons in the US: data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey III. J Am Geriatr Soc 48:1132–1135

    PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Pirmohamed M, James S, Meakin S et al (2004) Adverse drug reactions as cause of admission to hospital: prospective analysis of 18.820 patients. BMJ 329:15–19

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Prasad S (2011) Ailing and hospitalization in India—an analysis of NSS 52nd and 60th round. Vdm Verlag Dr. Müller Aktiengesellschaft, Saarbrücken

    Google Scholar 

  • Purser JL, Kuchibhatla MN, Fillenbaum GG, Harding T, Peterson ED, Alexander KP (2006) Identifying frailty in hospitalized older adults with significant coronary artery disease. J Am Geriatr Soc 54:1674–1681

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Rajan IS (2007) Population aging, health and social security in India. Center for Development Studies India. CREI, Osaka. http://www.econ.osaka-cu.ac.jp/CREI/discussion/2006/CREI_DP003.pdf. Accessed 15 Oct 2011

  • Ranganathan VK, Siemionow V, Sahgal V, Yue GH (2001) Effects of aging on hand function. J Am Geriatr Soc 49:1478–1484

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Rothwell PM (2005) External validity of randomized controlled trials: to whom do the results of this trial apply? Lancet 365:82–93

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Sato S, Demura S, Minami M, Kasuga K (2002) Longitudinal assessment of ADL ability of partially dependent elderly people: examining the utility of the index and characteristics of longitudinal change in ADL ability. J Physiol Anthropol Appl Human Sci 21:179–187

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Schneeweiss S, Hasford J, Gottler M, Hoffmann A, Riethling AK, Avorn J (2002) Admissions by adverse drug events to internal medicine and emergency departments in hospitals: a longitudinal population-based study. Eur J Clin Pharmacol 58:285–291

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Schwabe U, Paffrath D (eds) (2008) Arzneiverordnungsreport. Springer, Berlin

    Google Scholar 

  • Secoli SR, Figueras A, Lebra ML, de Lima FD, Ferreira Santos JL (2010) Risk of potential drug-drug interactions among Brazilian elderly. Drugs Aging 27:759–770

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Stone SP, Ali B, Auberleek I, Thompsell A, Young A (1994) The Barthel index in clinical practice: use on a rehabilitation ward for elderly people. J R Coll Physicians Lond 28:419–423

    PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Tamanini JTN, Santos JLF, Lebrao ML, Duarte YAO, Laurenti R (2011) Association between urinary incontinence in elderly patients and caregiver burden in the city of Sao Paulo/Brazil: health, wellbeing, and ageing study. Neurourol Urodyn 30:1281–1285

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • United Nations, Department of Economic and Social Affairs, Population Division (2011) World population prospects: the 2010 revision, New York (comprehensive excel tables). http://data.un.org. Accessed 15 Oct 2011

  • Van der Pols JC, Bates CJ, Thompson JR, Reacher M, Prentice A, Finch S (2000) Visual acuity measurements in a national sample of British elderly people. Br J Ophthalmol 84:165–170

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Vitale S, Cotch MF, Sperduto RD (2006) Prevalence of visual impairment in the United States. JAMA 295:2158–2163

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Wahl HW, Wetzler R (1998) Moglichkeiten und Grenzen selbständiger Lebensführung in Privathaushalten. Integrierter Bericht zum gleichnamigen Forschungsverbundprojekt. Kohlhammer, Stuttgart

    Google Scholar 

  • World Health Organization (2001) International classification of functioning, disability and health, Genf. http://www.who.int/classifications/icf/en/. Last accessed 25 Oct 2011

  • World Health Organization (2011) Definition of an older or elderly person. http://www.who.int/healthinfo/survey/ageingdefnolder/en/index.html. Accessed 13 Dec 2011

  • World Health Survey (2011) http://www.who.int/healthinfo/survey/en/. Accessed 15 Oct 2011

  • Zhang Y, Seshadri S, Ellison RC, Heeren T, Felson DT (2001) Bone mineral density and verbal memory impairment: third National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. Am J Epidemiol 154:795–802

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. IVth Department of Medicine, Geriatrics, University Medical Centre Mannheim, Theodor-Kutzer-Ufer 1-3, 68167, Mannheim, Germany

    Heinrich Burkhardt

Authors
  1. Heinrich Burkhardt
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Heinrich Burkhardt .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Inst. Klinische Pharmakologie, Klinikum Stadt Mannheim gGmbH, Theodor-Kutzer-Ufer 1-3, Mannheim, 68167, Germany

    Martin Wehling

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

Copyright information

© 2013 Springer-Verlag Wien

About this chapter

Cite this chapter

Burkhardt, H. (2013). Epidemiologic Aspects. In: Wehling, M. (eds) Drug Therapy for the Elderly. Springer, Vienna. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-7091-0912-0_2

Download citation

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-7091-0912-0_2

  • Published:

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Vienna

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-7091-0911-3

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-7091-0912-0

  • eBook Packages: MedicineMedicine (R0)

Publish with us

Policies and ethics

Search

Navigation