title: Polypharmacy among nonagenarians/centenarians in rural China.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Little is known about the prevalence and relevant factors of polypharmacy in nonagenarian and centenarians.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  The aim of this study is to examine the prevalence and associated factors of polypharmacy in a sample of nonagenarians and centenarians living in a rural area of China.
  
  
  METHODS
  The data were from the 'Project of Longevity and Aging in Dujiangyan' study. Medication use and relevant covariates were obtained by face-to-face interviews. Minor polypharmacy was defined as the concomitant use of two to four medications, whereas major polypharmacy referred to the concomitant use of five or more medications.
  
  
  RESULTS
  We included 859 participants with mean age of 93.7 ± 3.3 years. The number of chronic diseases was 1.4 ± 1.2 per subject, whereas the number of drugs was 0.8 ± 1.4 per subject. The prevalence of minor polypharmacy and major polypharmacy was 16.5% and 3.7% respectively. Illiteracy (odds ratio (OR) 2.93, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.52 to 5.66), cognitive impairment (OR 3.15, 95% CI 1.44 to 6.88), hypertension (OR 2.88, 95% CI 1.46 to 5.67), respiratory disease (OR 2.22, 95% CI 1.08 to 4.58), osteoarthritis (OR 1.24, 95% CI 1.01 to 1.51), and cancer (OR 10.70, 95% CI 1.90 to 126.80) were positively associated with minor polypharmacy. Illiteracy (OR 4.24, 95% CI 1.53 to 11.81), hypertension (OR 3.40, 95% CI 1.22 to 9.49) and cancer (OR 3.40, 95% CI 1.14 to 10.12) were also positively associated with major polypharmacy.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Although most subjects suffer from some chronic diseases, minor polypharmacy and major polypharmacy are not common among nonagenarians/centenarians in rural China.
authors.affiliation: Department of Pharmacy, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu, Sichuan, China.
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Lu
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Yang
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Luo
authors.forename: Q
authors.initials: Q
authors.lastname: Hao
authors.forename: B
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Dong
mesh_terms: D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D002681:China / Q000453:epidemiology; D002908:Chronic Disease / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000453:epidemiology; D003072:Cognition Disorders / Q000188:drug therapy; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D004365:Drugs, Chinese Herbal / Q000627:therapeutic use; D004522:Educational Status; D005260:Female; D041743:Herb-Drug Interactions; D006801:Humans; D006973:Hypertension / Q000188:drug therapy; D008297:Male; D008516:Medicine, Chinese Traditional; D009369:Neoplasms / Q000188:drug therapy; D016017:Odds Ratio; D010003:Osteoarthritis / Q000188:drug therapy; D019338:Polypharmacy; D015995:Prevalence; D012131:Respiratory Insufficiency / Q000188:drug therapy; D012424:Rural Population / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires
chemical_list: D004365:Drugs, Chinese Herbal
keywords: centenarian; chronic disease; epidemiology; nonagenarian; polypharmacy