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At least 289 records · Page 16Linked to original sources
PubMed1996

Combined pharmacotherapy or polypharmacy?

A case of possible 'serotonin syndrome' is reported. The use of combinations of psychotropic medications to treat children with severe behaviour disorders is an increasing trend among paediatricians and child psychiatrists. Some hazards as well as possible advantages are discussed.

Aggression↗
PubMed1993

Polypharmacy and its effect on urinary incontinence in a geriatric population.

The relationship between medication and incontinence was studied retrospectively in 128 elderly patients enrolled in an incontinence study. Patients were taking up to 18 non-topical medications but most of these were unlikely to have a significant urological effect. Nevertheless, 62% of patients were receiving, for other medical problems, up to 4 drugs which could potentially affect the lower urinary tract. These were classified by their mode of action. The most common types of urologically active medication, apart from diuretics, were calcium channel blockers, used by 21% of patients, and tricyclic antidepressants, used by 12%. The urodynamic findings in patients on different types of medication were compared. Patients with urodynamically proven urge incontinence who were on calcium channel blockers had significantly less urine loss than those not on the drug. Tricyclic antidepressants have been used in the treatment of urge incontinence; in this study urine loss was less severe among those receiving tricyclics, although the differences were not significant. A few patients on beta-blockers apparently had more severe urge incontinence. Drugs prescribed to the elderly for non-urological medical problems can affect the lower urinary tract and may have some effect, either beneficial or adverse, on incontinence.

Adrenergic beta-Antagonists↗
PubMed1983

Reduction of polypharmacy for epilepsy in an institution for the retarded.

It is a well-established fact that 20 to 40 per cent of patients in residential institutions for the retarded have seizures and take anticonvulsants. Most patients have quiescent seizure disorders and can manage well on monotherapy. In this study, 78 per cent of the patients remained seizure-free after switching from multiple-drug regimens to monotherapy.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1995

Rational polypharmacy.

The medical treatment of seizure disorders is a complex process, requiring extensive interaction and co-operation between physician and patient. The physician must have an accurate diagnosis of the patient's illness and a comprehensive understanding of seizures and seizure disorders. The physician must consider specific individual characteristics of the patient, especially those that will influence the choice of medical therapy, and the interrelationship between the patient's lifestyle and the seizure disorder must be appreciated to maintain an optimal quality of life. Finally, the physician must have a thorough understanding of the pharmacology of antiepileptic drugs (AEDs) and experience with their therapeutic applications. It is important for patients to be fully involved in the treatment of their illness. Each patient should be informed about their disorder, should be involved in all therapeutic plans and strategies, and should be a responsible and active participant in treatment.

Anticonvulsants↗
PubMed1999

Pharmacology of antiepileptic drug polypharmacy.

Therapeutic options for epilepsy are increasing, and all drugs can produce adverse side effects. Physicians should first use monotherapy when treating an epileptic patient. If one drug proves insufficient to control all seizures without intolerable side effects, then careful combination of the fewest drugs possible must be used. Combine drugs with different mechanisms of action rather than drugs with similar mechanisms of action. Closely monitor the patient for adverse side effects, which increase when multiple drugs are taken, and measure antiepileptic blood levels more frequently than with patients who are on monotherapy.

Anticonvulsants↗
PubMed1996

An intervention on discharge polypharmacy.

OBJECTIVE: To determine if providing a way to cancel pre-admission prescriptions would reduce the number of active drug prescriptions (RXs) at discharge. DESIGN: A randomized non-blinded clinical trial. SETTING: Inpatient acute medical service of a university affiliated Veterans Administration medical center. PARTICIPANTS: Twelve medicine ward teams were randomized to control and intervention groups. Patients controlled had been discharged from these teams during 12 weeks and were receiving outpatient medications from this facility at hospital admission; control = 180, intervention = 168. INTERVENTION: At discharge, intervention teams used a computer-generated drug list to cancel or renew previous outpatient RXs or to prescribe new medications. Control teams could not cancel outpatient drugs and wrote all medications on individual prescriptions. MEASUREMENTS: The difference between admission and discharge RXs. RESULTS: There were no significant differences in patients' age, sex, race, Charlson Index (CI), or LOS between patient groups at discharge. The intervention group had fewer RXs on admission (5.4 vs 6.2, P < .05) and at discharge was not significantly different (2.9 vs 2.9, P = .87) from the control group. CONCLUSIONS: Providing a method for canceling pre-admission medications did not reduce the number of RXs at discharge. Further research is needed to evaluate the appropriateness of the large increase in RXs from admission to discharge for patients in acute hospital settings.

Analysis of Variance↗
PubMed1977

Milk fever: a case against polypharmacy solutions.

One hundred and thirty four cases of hypocalcaemia (parturient paresis) between April and Jul 1976 from 72 herds in the UK and Eire were used to compare the response to intravenous treatments with one of three solutions containing calcium salts. Two solutions contained 8 g calcium, one with added magnesium (1.03 g), a third solution contained 6.2 g calcium. The biochemical response obtained 24 hours after successful treatment from all solutions was similar. The clinical response with both 8 g calcium solutions was similar and significantly superior to that obtained with 6.2 g calcium (P less than 0.02 greater than 0.01). More cases (44 per cent) relapsed after treatment with 6.2 g calcium. There was no evidence that the added magnesium to the calcium solution improved the clinical response of parturient paresis cases in this spring claving season, as had been suggested previously. The herds providing these 134 cases had recorded an incidence of 8.04 per cent for parturient paresis in 1975.

Animals↗