Abstract
Objective
Evaluate the prevalence and factors associated to polypharmacy in older adults from a rural area.
Method
Cross-sectional, quantitative study carried out with older adults residents from a rural area in Ponta Grossa city, Paraná, Brazil (n = 80). For data collection, a structured questionnaire was used. Polypharmacy was considered as a dependent variable and sociodemographic, lifestyle characteristics, presence of chronic diseases, self-perceived health, falls in the last year, suggestive of cognitive impairment and level of fragility were considered as independent variables. Chi-Square and Logistic Regression tests were performed.
Results
The prevalence of polypharmacy was 40.0%. Most were female (52.5%), aged between 60 and 74 years old (61.2%), white (76.2%), married (62.5%), and incomplete Elementary School (66,2%). Polypharmacy was associated to level of frailty (OR=3.73; CI95%=1.09-12.74; p=0.036), indicative for sarcopenia (OR=5.02; CI95%=1.39-18.13; p=0.014) and diabetes (OR=9.20; CI95%=2.37-36.05; p=0.001).
Conclusion
There was a high prevalence of polypharmacy in rural older adults, and this condition is linked to factors inherent to a greater degree of frailty, indicative of sarcopenia and diabetics.
Keywords
Elerly; Polypharmacy; Rural Health; Rural Areas