EuGMS Task and Finish group on Fall-Risk-Increasing Drugs (FRIDs): Position on Knowledge Dissemination, Management, and Future Research

A European survey of older peoples' preferences, and perceived barriers and facilitators to inform development of a medication-related fall-prevention patient portal

PURPOSE

Falls are a major and growing health care problem in older adults. A patient portal has the potential to provide older adults with fall-prevention advice to reduce fall-risk. However, to date, the needs and preferences regarding a patient portal in older people who have experienced falls have not been explored. This study assesses content preferences, potential barriers and facilitators with regard to using a patient portal, as perceived by older people who have experienced falls, and explores regional differences between European participants.

METHODS

We conducted a survey of older adults attending an outpatient clinic due to a fall or fall-related injury, to explore their content preferences, perceived barriers, and facilitators with respect to a fall-prevention patient portal. Older adults (N = 121, 69.4% female, mean age: 77.9) were recruited from seven European countries.

RESULTS

Almost two-thirds of respondents indicated they would use a fall-prevention patient portal. The portal would preferably include information on Fall-Risk-Increasing Drugs (FRIDs), and ways to manage other related/relevant medical conditions. Facilitators included a user-friendly portal, with easily accessible information and physician recommendations to use the portal. The most-commonly-selected barriers were privacy issues and usage fees. A family member's recommendation to use the portal was seemingly more important for Southern and Eastern European participants compared to the other regions.

CONCLUSION

The majority of older people with lived falls experience expressed an interest in a fall-prevention patient portal providing personalized treatment advice to prevent further falls. The results will be used to inform the development of a fall-prevention patient portal. The fall-prevention patient portal is intended to be used in addition to a consultation with a physician. Future research is needed to explore how to prevent falls in older patients who are not interested in a fall-prevention patient portal.

Identifying older inpatients at high risk of unintentional medication discrepancies: a classification tree analysis

Unintentional medication discrepancies at admission are differences between the best possible medication history and the prescribed treatment at admission, and are associated with adverse outcomes, particularly in older people. This study aimed to identify the clinical profiles of geriatric inpatients with unintentional medication discrepancies at hospital admission. A classification tree Chi-square Automatic Interaction Detector (CHAID) analysis was conducted to assess those patients' profiles and characteristics that were associated with a higher risk of unintentional medication discrepancies. One-hundred and thirty consecutive older patients admitted to acute care (87 ± 5 years old; 61.8% women) were assessed. The CHAID analysis retrieved 5 clinical profiles of older inpatients with a risk of up to 94.4% for unintentional medication discrepancies. These profiles were determined based on combinations of three characteristics: use of eye drops, frequent falls (≥ 1/year), and admission due to urgent hospitalization. These easily measurable clinical characteristics may be helpful as a supportive measure to improve pharmacological care.

Polypharmacy and Bleeding Outcomes After Percutaneous Coronary Intervention

BACKGROUND

Polypharmacy was reported to be associated with major bleeding in various populations. However, there are no data on polypharmacy and its association with bleeding in patients undergoing percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI).Methods and Results: Among 12,291 patients in the CREDO-Kyoto PCI Registry Cohort-3, we evaluated the number of medications at discharge and compared major bleeding, defined as Bleeding Academic Research Consortium Type 3 or 5 bleeding, across tertiles (T1-3) of the number of medications. The median number of medications was 6, and 88.0% of patients were on ≥5 medications. The cumulative 5-year incidence of major bleeding increased incrementally with increasing number of medications (T1 [≤5 medications] 12.5%, T2 [6-7] 16.5%, and T3 [≥8] 20.4%; log-rank P<0.001). After adjusting for confounders, the risks for major bleeding of T2 (hazard ratio [HR] 1.21; 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.08-1.36; P=0.001) and T3 (HR 1.27; 95% CI 1.12-1.45; P<0.001) relative to T1 remained significant. The adjusted risks of T2 and T3 relative to T1 were not significant for a composite of myocardial infarction or ischemic stroke (HR 0.95 [95% CI 0.83-1.09; P=0.47] and HR 1.06 [95% CI 0.91-1.23; P=0.48], respectively).

CONCLUSIONS

In a real-world population of patients undergoing PCI, approximately 90% were on ≥5 medications. Increasing number of medications was associated with a higher adjusted risk for major bleeding, but not ischemic events.

Acute effect of kinesiotaping on pain, balance and gait performance in patients with knee osteoarthritis: A randomized controlled study

BACKGROUND

Kinesiotape application is one of the non-pharmacological methods frequently used in patients with knee OA. Guidelines do not have a consensus on its use in knee osteoarthritis (OA).

OBJECTIVE

In this study, we aimed to investigate the acute effect of kinesiotape application on pain, balance, and gait performance in patients with knee OA.

METHODS

We included 164 patients with grade 1-3 knee OA according to the Kellgren-Lawrence staging system in the study. Patients were evaluated with visual analog scale (VAS), 10-meter walking test (10MeWT), timed-up and go test (TUG-T), single leg stance test (SLST), and functional reach test (FRT) before and after taping.

RESULTS

There was a significant improvement in the post-taping scores of all evaluation parameters in the kinesiotaping group compared with pre-taping scores. Statistically significant improvement was found in all scores of evaluated parameters except FRT scores in the placebo taping group. We found a significant superiority in the mean recovery scores of the kinesiotaping group compared to the placebo-taping group in all parameters except for 10MeWT.

CONCLUSIONS

We found significant improvements in both groups. The mean improvement levels in pain and balance scores were better in the KT group than in the PT group.

Development and Pilot Testing of a Booklet Concerning Medications That Can Increase the Risk of Falls in Older People

Background: A common contributory factor to falls is the use of medicines, especially those commonly known as “fall-risk increasing drugs” (FRIDs). The use of FRIDs is common among older people (OP). However, OP and their family caregivers (FCGs) are largely unaware of FRIDs and their risks in increasing the risk of falls (ROF). Methods: A booklet which aims to provide information on topics related to FRIDs was developed. The booklet was reviewed by a panel of 14 reviewers, and the content validity index (CVI) for each subsection of the booklet was computed. Pilot testing of the booklet utilized a pre-post intervention study design and included 50 OP and 50 FCGs as study participants. Perceived knowledge of the participants was assessed prior to and after completing the booklet. Participants’ opinions on the usefulness and usability of the booklet were also obtained. Results: The booklet contained eight sections and each subsection of the booklet had a CVI ranging from 0.93 to 1.00. Completing the booklet resulted in improved perceived knowledge scores for each perceived knowledge item among both the OP and FCG groups (all items: p-value < 0.001). The participants perceived the booklet as useful and usable, as evidenced by almost all the perceived usefulness and usability items having a score of over 4.0. Conclusions: The FRIDs booklet developed in this study had good content validity and was widely accepted by the OP and FCGs. The positive effect on the participants’ knowledge of topics related to FRIDs means that the booklet could be useful as a patient education tool to enhance FRIDs knowledge and awareness among OP and FCGs.

Development of an effective clustering algorithm for older fallers

Falls are common and often lead to serious physical and psychological consequences for older persons. The occurrence of falls are usually attributed to the interaction between multiple risk factors. The clinical evaluation of falls risks is time-consuming as a result, hence limiting its availability. The purpose of this study was, therefore, to develop a clustering-based algorithm to determine falls risk. Data from the Malaysian Elders Longitudinal Research (MELoR), comprising 1411 subjects aged ≥55 years, were utilized. The proposed algorithm was developed through the stages of: data pre-processing, feature identification and extraction with either t-Distributed Stochastic Neighbour Embedding (t-SNE) or principal component analysis (PCA)), clustering (K-means clustering, Hierarchical clustering, and Fuzzy C-means clustering) and characteristics interpretation with statistical analysis. A total of 1279 subjects and 9 variables were selected for clustering after the data pre-possessing stage. Using feature extraction with the t-SNE and the K-means clustering algorithm, subjects were clustered into low, intermediate A, intermediate B and high fall risk groups which corresponded with fall occurrence of 13%, 19%, 21% and 31% respectively. Slower gait, poorer balance, weaker muscle strength, presence of cardiovascular disorder, poorer cognitive performance, and advancing age were the key variables identified. The proposed fall risk clustering algorithm grouped the subjects according to features. Such a tool could serve as a case identification or clinical decision support tool for clinical practice to enhance access to falls prevention efforts.

Anticholinergics and falls in older adults

INTRODUCTION

The use of medications with anticholinergic (ACh) properties is associated with numerous adverse effects especially in older adults. Emerging evidence suggests the presence of long-term effects with ACh use.

AREAS COVERED

Our article presents an overview of ACh effects and falls in older individuals including examination of emerging evidence on ACh use and cumulative exposure on short-term and long-term falls risk. The databases CINAHL, MEDLINE, EMBASE, and Web of Science were searched for articles published from January 2002 to December 2021.

EXPERT OPINION

Anticholinergic side effects include muscle weakness, blurred vision, and mental confusion which are likely to lead to increased falls risk. Many commonly used medications such as beta-blockers, calcium-channel blockers, and antihistamines are now known to have mild ACh properties. With polypharmacy now considered unavoidable in older patients, the cumulative effects of the use of multiple drugs with mild ACh properties may also lead to increased falls risk. The relationship between ACh drugs and falls may also be irreversible as ACh effects may extend beyond the period of drug use, due to cognitive and physical deconditioning following the initial exposure to ACh drugs. Future long-term studies with accurate quantification of cumulative ACh exposure and measurement of actual falls outcomes are urgently required.

Role of medicines management in preventing falls in older people

Falls are common in older people and are a cause of preventable morbidity and mortality. As well as causing injury, falls can result in pain, distress, loss of confidence, loss of independence and increased mortality. Older people are more likely to visit an emergency department following a fall, therefore these incidents place a high burden on these patients and their carers, as well as on healthcare systems. Appropriate risk assessment accompanied by multifactorial falls prevention interventions can reduce the risk of falls. Assessments should include a medication review because various medicines, sometimes referred to as 'falls risk increasing drugs', can precipitate or contribute to falls. This article examines some of the medicines in this group that can contribute to falls, serious injuries and fractures in older people. It also discusses the importance of medicines management as part of falls risk assessment and prevention interventions.

Barriers and facilitators in using a Clinical Decision Support System for fall risk management for older people: a European survey

PURPOSE

Fall-Risk Increasing Drugs (FRIDs) are an important and modifiable fall-risk factor. A Clinical Decision Support System (CDSS) could support doctors in optimal FRIDs deprescribing. Understanding barriers and facilitators is important for a successful implementation of any CDSS. We conducted a European survey to assess barriers and facilitators to CDSS use and explored differences in their perceptions.

METHODS

We examined and compared the relative importance and the occurrence of regional differences of a literature-based list of barriers and facilitators for CDSS usage among physicians treating older fallers from 11 European countries.

RESULTS

We surveyed 581 physicians (mean age 44.9 years, 64.5% female, 71.3% geriatricians). The main barriers were technical issues (66%) and indicating a reason before overriding an alert (58%). The main facilitators were a CDSS that is beneficial for patient care (68%) and easy-to-use (64%). We identified regional differences, e.g., expense and legal issues were barriers for significantly more Eastern-European physicians compared to other regions, while training was selected less often as a facilitator by West-European physicians. Some physicians believed that due to the medical complexity of their patients, their own clinical judgement is better than advice from the CDSS.

CONCLUSION

When designing a CDSS for Geriatric Medicine, the patient's medical complexity must be addressed whilst maintaining the doctor's decision-making autonomy. For a successful CDSS implementation in Europe, regional differences in barrier perception should be overcome. Equipping a CDSS with prediction models has the potential to provide individualized recommendations for deprescribing FRIDs in older falls patients.

Inclusion of medication-related fall risk in fall risk assessment tool in geriatric care units

BACKGROUND

Falls are common undesirable events for older adults in institutions. Even though the patient's fall risk may be scored on admission, the medication-induced fall risk may be ignored. This study developed a preliminary categorization of fall-risk-increasing drugs (FRIDs) to be added as a risk factor to the existing fall risk assessment tool routinely used in geriatric care units.

METHODS

Medication use data of older adults who had experienced at least one fall during a hospital ward or a nursing home stay within a 2-year study period were retrospectively collected from patient records. Medicines used were classified into three risk categories (high, moderate and none) according to the fall risk information in statutory summaries of product characteristics (SmPCs). The fall risk categorization incorporated the relative frequency of such adverse drug effects (ADEs) in SmPCs that were known to be connected to fall risk (sedation, orthostatic hypotension, syncope, dizziness, drowsiness, changes in blood pressure or impaired balance). Also, distribution of fall risk scores assessed on admission without considering medications was counted.

RESULTS

The fall-experienced patients (n = 188, 128 from the hospital and 60 from nursing home records) used altogether 1748 medicaments, including 216 different active substances. Of the active substances, 102 (47%) were categorized as high risk (category A) for increasing fall risk. Fall-experienced patients (n = 188) received a mean of 3.8 category A medicines (n = 710), 53% (n = 375) of which affected the nervous and 40% (n = 281) the cardiovascular system. Without considering medication-related fall risk, 53% (n = 100) of the patients were scored having a high fall risk (3 or 4 risk scores).

CONCLUSION

It was possible to develop a preliminary categorization of FRIDs basing on their adverse drug effect profile in SmPCs and frequency of use in older patients who had experienced at least one documented fall in a geriatric care unit. Even though more than half of the fall-experienced study participants had high fall risk scores on admission, their fall risk might have been underestimated as use of high fall risk medicines was common, even concomitant use. Further studies are needed to develop the FRID categorization and assess its impact on fall risk.

Medications and the risk of falls among older people in a geriatric centre in Nigeria: a cross-sectional study

Background Falls are a major cause of morbidity and hospitalization in older people. Many drugs have been shown to increase the risk of falls in this population. Few empirical data exist on the use of fall-risk-increasing drugs among older people of sub-Saharan Africa countries. Objective This study aimed to assess the prevalence and predictors of falls, and the association between FRIDs, drugs causing orthostatic hypotension and falls. Setting Geriatric center, University College Hospital, Ibadan, Nigeria. Methods A cross-sectional study of 400 older patients aged ≥ 60 years selected consecutively at the geriatric centre, between September and November 2019, were interviewed using a semi-structured questionnaire. Socio-demographic information, medication utilization, and history of falls were obtained. Bivariate and multivariate analyses were carried out using SPSS 23. Alpha was set at 0.05. Main outcome measure Prevalence and predictors of falls among ambulatory older patients. Results The mean age of the older patients was 72.4 ± 7.3 years and 255 (63.7%) were females. The total number of FRIDs and ODs used by older patients was 578 (35.2%). The prevalence of fall was 181 (45.3%) which was significantly higher among the females compared with the males (51.8% vs 33.8%) p = 0.01. Classes of medications such as anti-Parkinson's (p = 0.027), sedatives (p = 0.033), antipsychotics (p = 0.011) and anticholinergic (p = 0.027) were significantly associated with fall. Predictive factors for falls on logistic regression were female [OR = 2.375; 95% CI 0.274-3.704, p = 0.001] and use of antipsychotics [OR = 5.132; 95% CI 1.352-19.480, p = 0.016]. Conclusion The prevalence of falls was high and being a woman ≥ 60 years is a major risk factor for falling. Interventions to decrease falls in older patients by drug modification and deprescribing of FRIDs and ODs might reduce fall-related injuries. Thus, a multidisciplinary approach is essential for intervention to reduce the risk of falls and improve therapeutic outcomes among older patients.

Pharmacists' knowledge and counselling on fall risk increasing drugs in a tertiary teaching hospital in Nigeria

BACKGROUND

Falls and fall-related injuries are a foremost health concern among older adults aged 60 years and above. Fall-risk-increasing drugs (FRIDs) use by older adults is one related cause of falling, and it is frequently used among older adults. Pharmacist-led counselling is an aspect of patient education that has been associated with improved therapeutic outcome and quality of life in high income countries with scarcity of information in low-middle income countries. This study therefore aims to assess hospital pharmacists' knowledge and counselling on fall-related medications using the list compiled by the Swedish National Board of Health and Welfare on FRIDs and orthostatic drugs (ODs).

METHODS

A cross-sectional survey was carried out among 56 pharmacists working in a teaching hospital in Nigeria, between July and August 2019, using a self-administered questionnaire. Data were summarized with descriptive statistics while chi-square test was used for categorical variables at p < 0.05.

RESULTS

Thirty-five (62.5%) were within 10 years of practice experience. Two-third (62.5%) of the pharmacists possessed an additional qualification to Bachelor of Pharmacy degree. Twenty-two (40.0%) were aware of the FRIDs and ODs list. In all, (89.3%) had "unsatisfactory" knowledge of classes of medications and specific medicines that could cause a fall. Most pharmacists 42 (80.8%) focused counsel on appropriate medication use, adverse effects of drugs and storage of medications. Knowledge score of both FRIDs and ODs were neither significantly associated with pharmacists' years of qualification (χ² = 1.282; p = 0.733), (χ² = 2.311; p = 0.510) nor with possession of additional qualification (χ² = 0.854; p = 0.836), (χ² = 2.996; p = 0.392). Majority, 53 (98.1%) believed that patients will benefit from effective counselling on FRIDs and ODs. About half (25; 51.0%) suggested training through seminar presentation as a measure for FRIDs and ODs sensitization.

CONCLUSION

A substantial gap in knowledge and awareness of FRIDs and ODs was noted among the hospital pharmacists. However, engagement of pharmacists on counsel that focus on medication use, adverse effect and storage was relatively better. Thus, there is a general need to create awareness about fall-risk-increasing drugs among hospital pharmacists, so as to help improve the therapeutic outcome particularly in the older adults.