IPFS News Link • Science, Medicine and Technology
The Most Profound Way Modern Medicine Can Save Lives: Deprescribe Drugs!
• https://www.lewrockwell.comA deprescription program among elderly patients was recently shown to reduce the risk of death by 38%. [British Journal Pharmacology April 14, 2016] For comparison, statin drugs reduce the risk of mortality from heart disease by around 3% compared to taking an inactive placebo pill. [NY Times Feb 9, 2008]
The term deprescribe first showed up in the medical literature around 2007. [Bulletin Academy National Medicine Feb 2007]
Since then numerous reports have been written about the idea of doctors actually reducing Rx medication use or even taking patients off drugs altogether.
The case of a 76-year old woman admitted to the hospital for investigation of fatigue, malaise, emotional instability, muscle weakness, cough and dizziness upon rising from a chair, had been taking 7 medications and had recently completed a course of antibiotics. A diagnosis of adverse drug reactions was made and all medications were withdrawn. Her symptoms gradually resolved on their own.
Reviewers of this case said: "Adverse drug reactions are a common cause of avoidable hospital admissions in the elderly, estimated to cost billions every year. The single greatest risk factor for adverse drug reactions is the number of medications a person takes. Deprescribing to reduce potentially inappropriate medication is a possible way forward." [BMJ Case Reports May 14, 2015]
The problem of overmedication, also called polypharmacy, has grown in a medical culture where patients are presumed to have a drug deficiency. How do you introduce a deprescription program into a culture of medication?