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Multicenter Study
. 2019 Oct 10;19(1):260.
doi: 10.1186/s12877-019-1287-8.

Prevalence of Potentially Inappropriate Medication use in older drivers

Guohua Li  1   2   3 , Howard F Andrews  4   5 , Stanford Chihuri  6   7 , Barbara H Lang  6   7 , Cheng Shiun Leu  5 , David P Merle  8 , Abigail Gordon  6 , Thelma J Mielenz  8   7 , David Strogatz  9 , David W Eby  10   11 , Marian E Betz  12 , Carolyn DiGuiseppi  13 , Vanya C Jones  14 , Lisa J Molnar  10   11 , Linda L Hill  15 ; LongROAD Research Team
Collaborators, Affiliations
Multicenter Study

Prevalence of Potentially Inappropriate Medication use in older drivers

Guohua Li et al. BMC Geriatr. .

Abstract

Background: Potentially Inappropriate Medication (PIM) use has been studied in a variety of older adult populations across the world. We sought to examine the prevalence and correlates of PIM use in older drivers.

Methods: We applied the American Geriatrics Society 2015 Beers Criteria to baseline data collected from the "brown-bag" review of medications for participants of the Longitudinal Research on Aging Drivers (LongROAD) study to examine the prevalence and correlates of PIM use in a geographically diverse, community-dwelling sample of older drivers (n = 2949). Proportions of participants who used one or more PIMs according to the American Geriatrics Society 2015 Beers Criteria, and estimated odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) of PIM use associated with participant characteristics were calculated.

Results: Overall, 18.5% of the older drivers studied used one or more PIM. The most commonly used therapeutic category of PIM was benzodiazepines (accounting for 16.6% of the total PIMs identified), followed by nonbenzodiazepine hypnotics (15.2%), antidepressants (15.2%), and first-generation antihistamines (10.5%). Compared to older drivers on four or fewer medications, the adjusted ORs of PIM use were 2.43 (95% CI 1.68-3.51) for those on 5-7 medications, 4.19 (95% CI 2.95-5.93) for those on 8-11 medications, and 8.01 (95% CI 5.71-11.23) for those on ≥12 medications. Older drivers who were female, white, or living in urban areas were at significantly heightened risk of PIM use.

Conclusion: About one in five older drivers uses PIMs. Commonly used PIMs are medications known to impair driving ability and increase crash risk. Implementation of evidence-based interventions to reduce PIM use in older drivers may confer both health and safety benefits.

Trial registration: Not applicable.

Keywords: Aging; Beers criteria; Driving safety; Older adults; Potentially inappropriate medications.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare that they have no competing interests.

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Prevalence of Potentially Inappropriate Medication (PIM) use by urbanicity in older adult drivers, the Longitudinal Research on Aging Drivers (LongROAD) study
Fig. 2
Fig. 2
Prevalence of Potentially Inappropriate Medication (PIM) use by total number of medications used in older adult drivers, the Longitudinal Research on Aging Drivers (LongROAD) study
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

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