Medications use in the elderly Problemi di farmacologia clinica in età  geriatrica

The quality of medication prescribing and use in older persons has been a recurring issue of substantial concern for policy-makers, regulators, health care researchers, and the public. Although there have been numerous efforts to measure the extent of the problem and to identify areas in greatest need of change, constructing meaningful quality indicators relevant to drug therapy in elderly patients has continued to be a challenge. Prescribing medication in the elderly is a very complex task, either because they are more prone than adults to experience adverse drugs-related clinical events, either because their compliance to pharmachological prescription is often quite difficult. Furthermore, pharmacodinamic and pharmachokinetic changes occurring with age, need to be taken into the account In this article, the most relevant problems of pharmachological prescription in the elderly and the strategies to improve quality medication use are suggested