title: Potentially Inappropriate Medications by Beers Criteria in Older Outpatients: Prevalence and Risk Factors.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Prescription of inappropriate medicine to elderly patients is a major public health care concern. The Beers criteria have been commonly employed as a screening tool to identify the use of potentially inappropriate medications (PIMs). The present study investigated the prevalence of PIM use according to the Beers criteria as well as factors related to PIM use.
  
  
  METHODS
  Data obtained from a retrospective survey included 25,810 outpatients aged ≥65 years from a university medical center in Seoul, Korea. PIMs were defined using the Beers criteria. Factors associated with PIM use were evaluated using multiple regression analysis.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Of all participants, 7,132 (27.6%) were prescribed at least one PIM. The most commonly prescribed PIMs were alprazolam (11.2%), clonazepam (10.8%), zolpidem (8.7%), quetiapine (8.4%), and hydroxyzine (5.4%). In multivariate logistic regression analysis, having five or more prescription medicines (odds ratio [OR], 11.32; 95% confidence interval [CI], 9.38 to 13.66) and five or more prescribing doctors (OR, 4.40; 95% CI, 3.59 to 5.39) were strongly associated with PIM. In a likelihood ratio test for trend, an increasing number of medications and prescribing doctors were both significantly associated with PIM.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  At a university medical center, the number of medications and the number of prescribing doctors was associated with PIM in older outpatients.
authors.affiliation: Department of Family Medicine, Research Institute of Medical Science, Konkuk University Medical Center, Konkuk University School of Medicine, Seoul, Korea.
authors.forename: Yeon-Jung
authors.initials: YJ
authors.lastname: Lim
authors.affiliation: Department of Family Medicine, Research Institute of Medical Science, Konkuk University Medical Center, Konkuk University School of Medicine, Seoul, Korea.
authors.forename: Ha-Yeon
authors.initials: HY
authors.lastname: Kim
authors.affiliation: Department of Family Medicine, Research Institute of Medical Science, Konkuk University Medical Center, Konkuk University School of Medicine, Seoul, Korea.
authors.forename: Jaekyung
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Choi
authors.affiliation: Department of Family Medicine, Research Institute of Medical Science, Konkuk University Medical Center, Konkuk University School of Medicine, Seoul, Korea.
authors.forename: Ji Sun
authors.initials: JS
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.affiliation: Department of Family Medicine, Research Institute of Medical Science, Konkuk University Medical Center, Konkuk University School of Medicine, Seoul, Korea.
authors.forename: Ah-Leum
authors.initials: AL
authors.lastname: Ahn
authors.affiliation: Department of Family Medicine, Research Institute of Medical Science, Konkuk University Medical Center, Konkuk University School of Medicine, Seoul, Korea.
authors.forename: Eun-Jung
authors.initials: EJ
authors.lastname: Oh
authors.affiliation: Department of Family Medicine, Research Institute of Medical Science, Konkuk University Medical Center, Konkuk University School of Medicine, Seoul, Korea.
authors.forename: Dong-Yung
authors.initials: DY
authors.lastname: Cho
authors.affiliation: Department of Family Medicine, Research Institute of Medical Science, Konkuk University Medical Center, Konkuk University School of Medicine, Seoul, Korea.
authors.forename: Hyuk-Jung
authors.initials: HJ
authors.lastname: Kweon
keywords: Aged; Beers Criteria; Potentially Inappropriate Medication List; Prescriptions