Document Type

Poster

Publication Date

12-8-2014

Comments

Presented at ASHP in Anaheim California.

Abstract

Introduction

• Geriatric patients (> 65 years of age) have a 3-5% incremental increase in annual occurrence of trauma making it a top five leading cause of death in this population.

• The mortality rate ranges from 15-30%, which is 4-5 times higher than younger patients.

• In 2011, data from the Pennsylvania Trauma Systems Foundation (PTSF) demonstrated nearly 32% of injured patients statewide and nearly 50% of the trauma patients at Thomas Jefferson University Hospital (TJUH) were > 65 years.

• Most geriatric patients have comorbidities that are treated with many medications, which may predispose them for falls.

• Although there are many methods to assess safety of medication regimens in this population, the Screening Tool for Older Persons’ Prescriptions (STOPP), Screening Tool to Alert doctors to Right Treatment (START), and American Geriatrics Society (AGS)-endorsed Beer’s List 2012 are most utilized in current clinical practice.

• Both the STOPP and Beer’s 2012 tool identify potentially inappropriate medications (PIMs) in this population.

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