Polypharmacy in the elderly of an educational program in the Brazilian capital: a cross-sectional study

Abstract Introduction: The elderly correspond to the most medicalized group in society. Therefore, studies related to the use of medicines are important to improve policies that guarantee comprehensive care. The objective of this study was to investigate the polypharmacy among elderly individuals attending an educational program in the Federal District of Brazil and estimate the prevalence and associated variables. Method: This is a cross-sectional study with 150 elderly individuals whose data were collected in the period from December 2022 to April 2023 by means of telephone calls. Results: The prevalence of polypharmacy was estimated in 18.7%. The variables showing a positive association with polypharmacy were the following: health self-perceived as bad or very bad (PR = 8.9; 95 % CI 4.78 - 16.70), smoking (PR = 2.50; 95 % CI 1.06 - 5.89), systemic arterial hypertension (PR = 3.55; 95 % CI 1.40 - 9.00), diabetes mellitus (PR = 3.46; 95 % CI 1.67 - 7.18), depression (PR = 3.32; 95 %CI 1.58 - 6.75), multimorbidity (PR = 8.97; 95 % CI 1.26 - 64.10) and Charlson Comorbidity Index equal to or greater than 3 (PR = 7.21; 95 % CI 1.14 - 26.17). Conclusions: The prevalence of polypharmacy and associated variables are corroborated by other Brazilian studies. Therefore, it is pointed out that healthcare teams should pay attention to this aspect of geriatric pharmacotherapy to favour the responsible use of medications and yield positive clinical outcomes.