Operational Definitions of Polypharmacy and Their Association with All-Cause Hospitalization Risk: A Conceptual Framework Using Administrative Databases.

ABSTRACT: Polypharmacy, defined as the concurrent use of multiple medications, increases the risk of various adverse outcomes. However, the variability in definitions across the literature contributes to substantial heterogeneity. Building on the published literature, this study aimed to identify a set of operational definitions of polypharmacy applicable to administrative databases and to assess their association with all-cause hospitalization. Data from the pharmacy refill and hospitalization databases of the Local Health Unit (LHU) of Bergamo, Lombardy, were analyzed. Patients aged ≥40 with at least one reimbursed drug prescription in 2017 were included. Prescription coverage was evaluated using total defined daily doses (DDDs), and all-cause hospitalizations from January to June 2018 were consid

SUBMITTER: Scotti S 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC11859879 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature