Table 1.
Prescribed drugs at presentation to the ED
| Drug class | Number of patients | Percent % (total n = 633) |
|---|---|---|
| Diuretics (all types) |
294 |
46.4 |
| Non-thiazide diuretics |
225 |
41.4 |
| Thiazide diuretics |
136 |
21.5 |
| ACE inhibitors/AR blockers |
231 |
36.5 |
| Beta-blockers |
211 |
33.3 |
| Other cardiovascular drugs† |
129 |
20.4 |
| Platelet aggregation inhibitors |
236 |
37.3 |
| Vitamin K- antagonists |
90 |
14.2 |
| Systemic steroids |
47 |
7.4 |
| NSAID |
98 |
15.5 |
| Opioids |
69 |
10.9 |
| All psychotropic drugs |
298 |
47.1 |
| Benzodiazepines |
121 |
19.1 |
| Neuroleptics |
91 |
14.4 |
| Antidepressants |
160 |
25.3 |
| Other‡ |
86 |
13.6 |
| Anticonvulsants |
61 |
9.6 |
| Anti-Parkinson drugs | 48 | 7.6 |
†calcium channel blockers, nitrates, digoxine, amiodarone.
‡other hypnotica such as barbiturates, zopiclone and zolpidem and others, such as St. Johns Worth.