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Related Concept Videos

Drug Dosing: Geriatric Patients01:15

Drug Dosing: Geriatric Patients

Elderly individuals encompass a diverse population with varying degrees of age-related physiological changes. Defining the elderly presents challenges, as the geriatric population is often arbitrarily categorized as individuals older than 65. However, many individuals in this group lead active and healthy lives, with an increasing number surpassing 85 years and falling into the older elderly category. Physiological changes associated with aging impact performance capacity and homeostatic...
Pharmacodynamics in Geriatric Patients: Effects of Age01:27

Pharmacodynamics in Geriatric Patients: Effects of Age

Age-related pharmacokinetic changes are extensively documented, but understanding age-related pharmacodynamic alterations is relatively limited. This knowledge gap can be partly attributed to the complexity of developing appropriate measures of drug responses compared to bioanalytical methods for determining drug concentrations.Most information regarding age-related differences in human pharmacodynamics originates from cross-sectional studies. However, these studies assume that observed mean...
Pharmacokinetics in Geriatric Patients: Effect of Age on Drug Distribution01:00

Pharmacokinetics in Geriatric Patients: Effect of Age on Drug Distribution

Drug distribution in the human body is influenced by several factors, including plasma protein concentration, body composition, blood flow, tissue-protein concentration, and tissue fluid pH. Among these, changes in plasma protein concentration and body composition due to aging significantly affect how drugs are distributed within the body. Specifically, aging is associated with a decrease in albumin levels by about 10% and an increase in α1-acid glycoprotein levels. These alterations are not...
Pharmacokinetics in Geriatric Patients: Effect of Age on Drug Absorption01:22

Pharmacokinetics in Geriatric Patients: Effect of Age on Drug Absorption

As individuals age, their body's physiology evolves, affecting drug pharmacokinetics. The most apparent changes occur in the gastrointestinal tract, where an increase in gastric pH, a delay in gastric emptying, and a reduction in gastrointestinal motility are observed. Remarkably, these changes do not substantially modify the absorption of orally administered drugs, particularly those absorbed via passive diffusion.Transdermal drug delivery emerges as a highly viable method for older adults due...
Pharmacokinetics in Geriatric Patients: Effect of Age on Drug Excretion01:18

Pharmacokinetics in Geriatric Patients: Effect of Age on Drug Excretion

In geriatric patients, renal physiology undergoes significant changes, including diminished renal blood flow and a lower glomerular filtration rate (GFR), leading to alterations in medication clearance. Drugs such as aminoglycoside antibiotics, lithium, and digoxin, which rely on glomerular filtration for removal from the body, particularly impact pharmacokinetics. These drugs tend to have slower clearance rates in older adults, necessitating careful dosage considerations.Evaluation of renal...
Pharmacokinetics in Geriatric Patients: Effect of Age on Drug Metabolism01:18

Pharmacokinetics in Geriatric Patients: Effect of Age on Drug Metabolism

Geriatric patients show significant variation in how their bodies process medications, which can change how effective and safe treatments are. The liver is the primary organ where drug metabolism occurs, involving two main types of chemical reactions: phase I and II. Phase I metabolism is driven by the cytochrome P450 enzyme system, which includes key types such as CYP3A, CYP2D6, and CYP2C9. Research indicates that while aging doesn't notably alter the levels or activity of these enzymes, it...

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Related Experiment Video

Updated: Jul 6, 2026

Assessment of Dependence in Activities of Daily Living Among Older Patients in an Acute Care Unit
06:52

Assessment of Dependence in Activities of Daily Living Among Older Patients in an Acute Care Unit

Published on: September 30, 2020

Depression and drug utilization in an elderly population.

Raffaele Antonelli Incalzi, Andrea Corsonello, Claudio Pedone

    Therapeutics and Clinical Risk Management
    |March 25, 2008
    PubMed
    Summary

    Depression in elderly patients is linked to increased medication use, but this association disappears when accounting for overall disease severity. This suggests depression reflects illness burden rather than directly causing higher drug consumption.

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    A New Method for Inducing a Depression-Like Behavior in Rats
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    A New Method for Inducing a Depression-Like Behavior in Rats
    07:57

    A New Method for Inducing a Depression-Like Behavior in Rats

    Published on: February 22, 2018

    Area of Science:

    • Geriatric Medicine
    • Clinical Pharmacy
    • Psychogeriatrics

    Background:

    • Depression is prevalent in elderly populations and may influence healthcare utilization.
    • Polypharmacy, defined as the use of at least three non-antidepressant/anxiolytic drugs daily, is a common issue in older adults.
    • Understanding factors associated with polypharmacy is crucial for optimizing medication management in the elderly.

    Purpose of the Study:

    • To investigate the association between depression, identified by a Geriatric Depression Scale (GDS) score greater than 6, and polypharmacy in elderly patients.
    • To determine if depression independently contributes to increased drug utilization or if it is a marker of underlying disease burden.

    Main Methods:

    • A cohort of 2568 elderly patients from the Gruppo Italiano di Farmacovigilanza nell'Anziano (GIFA) study was analyzed.
    • Polypharmacy was defined as the daily use of at least 3 drugs (excluding antidepressants/anxiolytics) in the month prior to admission.
    • Logistic regression analysis was employed to assess correlates of polypharmacy, including depression, age, comorbidities, and disease severity indexes.

    Main Results:

    • Depression (GDS > 6) showed a positive correlation with polypharmacy (OR 1.22; 95% CI 1.01-1.48), alongside older age and several chronic conditions like hypertension and diabetes.
    • Depression was negatively associated with analgesic use.
    • In subgroups with congestive heart failure or chronic renal failure, depression correlated with disease severity but not independently with polypharmacy in multivariable models adjusted for disease severity.

    Conclusions:

    • Depression is associated with polypharmacy in the general elderly population.
    • However, this association is mediated by the burden of disease, as it is not significant when disease severity indexes are considered.
    • Depression appears to be a marker of overall illness rather than a direct driver of increased drug consumption in elderly patients.