Table 2.
Sociodemographic details of the study sample (n = 290).
| Parameter | Medication related admission | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Yes (n = 67) | No (n = 223) | ||
| Gender [n (%)] | Male | 27 (18.9) | 116 (81.1) |
| Female | 40 (27.2) | 107 (72.8) | |
| Age [n (%)] | 65–74 y | 21 (19.3) | 88 (80.7) |
| 75–84 y | 29 (21.8) | 104 (78.2) | |
| 85–95 y | 17 (35.4) | 31 (64.6) | |
| Comorbidities [n (%)] | 0 | 2 (9.1) | 20 (90.9) |
| 1–4 | 31 (19.9) | 125 (80.1) | |
| 5–8 | 28 (31.8) | 60 (68.2) | |
| ≥9 | 6 (25.0) | 18 (75.0) | |
| Residence [n (%)] | Community-dwelling | 59 (22.4) | 204 (77.6) |
| Institution | 8 (29.6) | 19 (70.4) | |
| Number of regular medications [n (%)] | 0 | 1 (6.7) | 14 (93.3) |
| 1–5 | 11 (11.6) | 84 (88.4) | |
| 6–10 | 33 (28.9) | 81 (71.1) | |
| 11–15 | 19 (36.5) | 33 (63.5) | |
| ≥16 | 3 (21.4) | 11 (78.6) | |
| Number of medicines taken “when necessary” | 0 | 11 (12.4) | 78 (87.6) |
| 1–3 | 33 (23.7) | 106 (76.3) | |
| 4–6 | 19 (40.4) | 28 (59.6) | |
| ≥7 | 4 (26.7) | 11 (73.3) | |
| Polypharmacy [n (%)]* | Yes | 58 (28.2) | 148 (71.8) |
| No | 9 (10.7) | 75 (89.3) | |
| Specialty [n (%)] | Internal medicine | 33 (21.0) | 124 (79.0) |
| Surgery | 21 (30.9) | 47 (69.1) | |
| Neurology | 11 (18.6) | 48 (81.4) | |
| Other | 2 (33.3) | 4 (66.7) | |
| Age [y: mean ± SD (range)] | 79.2 ± 7.9 (65–94) | 76.3 ±7.3 (65–95) | |
| Comorbidities [mean ± SD (range)] | 4.9 ± 2.5 (0–12) | 3.9 ± 2.6 (0–12) | |
| Number of regular medication [mean ± SD (range)] | 9.1 ± 4.0 (0–22) | 6.8 ± 4.5 (0–22) | |
| Number of medication used “when needed” [mean ± SD (range)] | 2.8 ± 2.2 (0–11) | 2.0 ± 2.3 (0–15) | |
Information on patients' demographics (age, sex, living arrangement), comorbidities, medication regimen, ADE, drug interactions, and reason for admission was gathered from electronic patient records. Admissions were divided into groups according to different sociodemographic variables for further analysis.
*
OR 3.3; 95% CI, 1.5–6.9; p = 0.001.