[Principles of pharmacotherapy in geriatrics]

This article examines the pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics of drugs under the aspects of senile changes in organs and systems in the neurohumoral regulation and in metabolism. It gives reasons for the inadequacy of polypharmacy in the treatment of elderly and old people and for the need of a strict individualization. The retarded reactivity of the organism of old people, their increased susceptibility and reduced tolerance of the effects of drugs necessitate smaller dosages of drugs in geriatrics in comparison with the generally usual dosages, especially at the beginning of treatment. The multitude of exogenous and endogenous changes in the organism, that go hand in hand with the process of aging, leads in old people to an increased susceptibility to more frequent and pronounced secondary effects caused by drugs. Of special importance in the prevention of a possible intoxication by drugs are, in the case of elderly people, the proper composition of food, the water balance and the electrolyte metabolism.