Drug-Drug Interactions in the Elderly on Antidepressants
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Authors
Sefar-Tawiah, Eno
Issue Date
1999
Type
Thesis
Language
en_US
Keywords
Prescription drugs , Multi-drug interaction , Elderly , Antidepressant
Alternative Title
Abstract
The objective of this thesis is to review the literature on multi-drug interactions observed in samples of older and elderly people taking antidepressants. The review of the literature is used not only to delineate the basic nature of the problem but also to develop a list of recommendations for chiropractors and other health/mental health care personnel working for these patients in order to assist health/mental health care to avoid and/or identify the existence of the problem in clients with whom they work. The basic procedures used in the study consisted of an exhaustive search of several relevant databases (e.g., HealthStar, Medline; American Medical Association Journal database, etc.) and internet search engines using key works. The abstracts obtained from the search were then reviewed and those articles that seemed relevant to the research problem were also obtained and reviewed. Information was then abstracted from each pertinent article. The presented review of the literature indicated that many drug interactions experienced by older/elderly people taking antidepressants are avoidable. It was also noted that while the problem is not wide spread, in at least ten percent of the cases, the consequences can be very serious. The reviewed literature also indicated that the problem of drug interactions in older patients taking antidepressants is multiplied. Contributing factors include: the age of the patient, the number of drugs prescribed, the number of physicians involved in the patient's care and the presence of increasing frailty, the type of antidepressant prescribed and the recommended dosage, incomplete research on the effects of each antidepressant and their risk for drug interactions in older and elderly patients. Based on the findings of this review, several recommendations were developed including: limiting the amount of prescribed drugs given to the patient, monitoring for side effects and interactions, encouraging patients to report symptoms following the introduction of new drugs, identifying the causes of any observed drug interaction and planning for future prevention, reporting schemes for observed interactions, developing patient and health care training and educational programs regarding the risks of drug interactions in older patient groups who are taking antidepressants, and making sure to select the type of antidepressant to be given to the patient on an individual basis.
Description
This thesis is being archived as a Digitized Shelf Copy for campus access to current students and staff only. We currently cannot provide this open access without the author's permission. If you are the author of this work and desire to provide it open access or wish access removed, please contact the Wahlstrom Library to discuss permission.
Citation
E. Sefar-Tawiah, "Drug-Drug Interactions in the Elderly on Antidepressants", D.C. dissertation, College of Chiropractic, Univ. of Bridgeport, Bridgeport, CT, 1999.