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Table 2 Frequencies of chronic conditions and drug use among the participating patients (n = 579)

From: Epidemiology and associated factors of polypharmacy in older patients in primary care: a northern Italian cross-sectional study

Chronic conditions

Number of diagnoses (total)

Median (IQR)

Min

Max

 3143

5 (4 – 6)

1

14

Most frequent diagnoses

n patients

% of participating patients

 Hypertension

490

84.6%

 Arthrosis

266

45.9%

 Diabetes mellitus II

220

38.0%

 Dyslipidaemia

202

34.9%

 Atrial fibrillation

179

30.9%

 Coronary heart disease

175

30.2%

 Osteoporosis

157

27.1%

 Depression

124

21.4%

 Benign prostatic hypertrophy

110

19.0%

 Gastro-oesophageal reflux disease

98

16.9%

 Chronic heart failure

93

16.1%

 Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD)

81

14.0%

 Chronic renal failure

73

12.6%

 Hyperuricaemia / gout

65

11.2%

 Hypothyroidism

64

11.1%

 Insomnia

60

10.4%

 Cerebrovascular disease / dementia

58 (54 + 4)

10.0% (9.3% + 0.7%)

Drug use

Number of drugs (total)

Median (IQR)

Min

Max

 5614

9 (8 – 11)

8

20

Number of drugs per patient

n patients

% of participating patients

 8 – 9 drugs

330

57.0%

 ≥ 10 drugs

249

43.0%

Most frequently used drug classes per patienta

n patients

% of participating patients

 ARBs + ACE-inhibitors

481 (251 + 230)

83.1% (43.4% + 39.7%)

 PPIs

320

55.3%

 Statins

319

55.1%

 Platelet-aggregation inhibitors

311

53.7%

 Beta-blockers

306

52.8%

 Minor diuretics (predominantly hydrochlorothiazide)

273

47.2%

 CCBs

248

42.8%

 Loop diuretics (predominantly Furosemide)

244

42.1%

 Vitamins (predominantly vit. D)

227

39.2%

 Antidepressants + antipsychotics

215

37.1%

 Oral anticoagulants

190

32.8%

 Anxiolytics/hypnotics (Benzodiazepines + Zolpidem)

173

29.9%

 Dietary supplements (predominantly Calcium)

171

29.5%

 Oral antidiabetic drugs

156

26.9%

 Antiasthmatic agents incl. Beta-adrenergics + anticholinergics

134

23.1%

 Opioids

127

21.9%

 Analgesics - Paracetamol

126

21.8%

 Thyroid hormones

114

19.7%

 Corticosteroids

106

18.3%

 NSAIDs + COX-2-inhibitors (Coxibe)

88

15.2%

  1. IQR Interquartile range, Min Minimum, Max Maximum, COPD Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, ARBs Angiotensin II receptor antagonists, ACE Angiotensin converting enzyme, PPIs Proton pump inhibitors, CCBs Calcium channel blockers, NSAIDs Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, COX Cyclooxygenase
  2. a If one patient was assuming two active agents from the same drug class, this was counted as one drug class