an estimated two out of three canadians over the age of 65 are prescribed five or more drug therapies, and one out of four are prescribed 10 or more medications over the course of a year. sometimes these medications are necessary, but sometimes they may need adjusting or they may even be unnecessary – medications we no longer need or that may have more possible harms than benefits.
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but one way polypharmacy happens is because of something called “prescribing cascades.” prescribing cascades occur when a drug therapy is started and an adverse effect develops. these new symptoms are often misinterpreted as a new medical condition which leads to the inappropriate beginning of a new drug therapy to treat the new symptoms.
in our research into prescribing cascades, we initially described three common prescribing cascades . now more than 160 prescribing cascades have been identified . highlighting the impact of prescribing cascades is essential because it demonstrates how potentially inappropriate medications could be avoided.
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our recent study, published in the journal of the american geriatrics society also raises another concern about prescribing cascades: the impact of a common prescribing cascade on health-care use, including emergency room visits and hospital admissions.
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