Status quo of polypharmacy in elderly patients with cardiovascular and metabolic diseases and its relationship with medication compliance
LI Lan
WANG Yuchan
HOU Liangping
JIA Dongxia
YANG Xianzheng
Abstract：Objective To explore the status quo of polypharmacy in elderly patients with cardiovascular and metabolic diseases and analyze its influence on medication compliance.Methods A total of 205 elderly eligible patients admitted to our department from December 2023 to December 2024 were enrolled,and based on the medication situation,the patients were classified into hyperpolypharmacy group(42 cases)and non-hyperpolypharmacy group(163 cases).According to Morisky medication compliance scale score,the patients were also divided into compliance group(122 cases)and non-compliance group(83 cases).Multimorbidity and polypharmacy statuses and medication compliance were investigated in all participants,and the related factors affecting the medication compliance were analyzed.Results Among the 205 elderly patients with cardiovascular and metabolic diseases,there were 138 cases(67.3%)with two comorbidities and 67 cases(32.7%)with more than three comorbidities.The hyperpolypharmacy group exhibited significantly larger proportions of improper dosage of polypharmacy and pharmacological than the non-hyperpolypharmacy group(31.0%vs 9.8%,35.7%vs 7.4%,P<0.01).Obviously older age,larger divorced/widowed ratio,having education level of junior high school and below,higher proportions of hyperpolypharmacy,oral administration+subcutaneous/intravenous medication and self-paying,and elevated patient health questionnaire-9(PHQ-9)score and generalized anxiety disorder-7(GAD7)score were observed in the non-compliance group than the compliance group(P<0.05,P<0.01).Multivariate logistic regression analysis indicated that age,divorced/widowed,education level of junior high school and below,hyperpolypharmacy,oral administration+subcutaneous/intravenous medication,self-paying,PHQ-9 score and GAD7 score were risk factors for medication compliance(P<0.05,P<0.01).The hospitalization rate for adverse reactions caused by non-compliance in the hyperpolypharmacy group was significantly higher than that in the non-hyperpolypharmacy group(42.4%vs 22.0%,P<0.05).Conclusion The phenomenon of polypharmacy is quite common in elderly patients with cardiovascular and metabolic diseases,which aggravates the difficulty of clinical medication management.The types and ways of medication,education level,emotions and other issues have great impacts on medication compliance.Clinically,it is necessary to formulate some targeted measures to strengthen the management.
Keywords：cardiovascular diseasesmetabolic diseasestreatment adherence and compliance
Publication Date：2026-02-15
Online Publishing Date：2026-03-11(First online date of this platform, not the publication date of the document)
Pages：4( 191-194 )