Predictors of adverse drug reactions in geriatric patients: An exploratory study among cancer patients

Caregiver burden in older Indian patients with cancer- Experience from a tertiary care center

INTRODUCTION

Most of the long-term care for older adults with chronic or debilitating illnesses is provided by unpaid family members or informal caregivers. There is limited information on caregiver burden among caregivers of older patients with cancer in India. Hence, we assessed the prevalence and severity of caregiver burden among caregivers of older Indian patients with cancer.

METHODS

This was an observational study conducted at the geriatric oncology clinic at Tata Memorial Centre, Mumbai, India. Caregivers of patients aged 60 years and over with a diagnosis of cancer were assessed for caregiver burden using the Zarit Burden Interview. Descriptive statistics were used for demographic and clinical variables. Factors impacting caregiver burden were analyzed using multiple linear regression analysis.

RESULTS

Caregiver burden was assessed among 127 caregivers of older Indian patients with cancer. The median patient age was 69 years (range 60-90). Most patients were men (75.6%). There were 33 female caregivers (26%), and 94 male caregivers (74%). The median caregiver burden score was 12 (IQR 6-20). Caregiver burden was "little/none" in 97 (76.4%), "mild-moderate" in 25 (19.7%), "moderate-severe" in four (3.1%) and "severe" in one (0.8%) of the caregivers assessed. On multivariate analysis, factors that significantly impacted caregiver burden scores were the presence of psychological issues in the patient and the caregiver's educational level.

CONCLUSION

Caregiver burden was low among caregivers of older Indian patients with cancer seen at a single center. Caregivers of patients with psychological disorders, and those who had less schooling reported higher caregiver burden.

Predictors of hospital-acquired adverse drug reactions: a cohort of Ugandan older adults

Background

Globally, it is estimated that the number of older adults will become 2 billion by 2050. The identification of the predictors of adverse drug reaction (ADR) in hospitalized older patients is crucial to the development of prediction tools and preventive strategies to mitigate the burden of ADRs. This study aimed to determine the predictors of hospital-acquired ADR occurrence among hospitalized older adults in a low-income country.

Methods

We conducted a prospective cohort of older adults admitted to medical, oncology, and surgery wards at Mbarara Regional Referral Hospital (MRRH) for a consecutive 6 months where each patient was followed up daily from admission to discharge. We used Edwards and Aronson’s definition of ADR and the Naranjo ADR Causality Scale. We employed Beer’s criteria and Lexicomp to determine potentially inappropriate medications, and drug interactions, respectively. We conducted univariate and multivariable logistic regression using Statistical Package for the Social Science (SPSS) Version 23.0.

Results

Out of 523 participants with median (Inter Quartile Range) age of 67 (62–76) years, 256 (48.9%) experienced at least one ADR. Independent predictors of occurrence of hospital acquired ADRs included age of 60–75 (Adjusted odds ratio (AOR) = 1.97, 95% C.I: 1.14–3.41; p value = 0.015) compared to > 75 years, previous ADR in 1 year (AOR = 2.43, 95% C.I: 1.42–4.17; p value = 0.001), potentially inappropriate medication (AOR = 4.56, 95% C.I: 2.70–7.70; p value< 0.001), polypharmacy (AOR = 3.29, 95% C.I: 1.98–5.46; p value< 0.001)), having a Charlison Comorbidity Index (CCI) ≥ 6 (AOR = 8.47, 95% C.I: 4.85–14.99; p value< 0.001), having heart failure (AOR = 2.83, 95% C.I: 1.34–6.02; p value = 0.007) or kidney disease (AOR = 1.95, 95% C.I: 1.05–3.61; p value = 0.034) and a hospital stay > 10 days (AOR = 3.53, 95% C.I: 1.89–6.61; p value< 0.001) compared to < 5 days.

Conclusion

The current prevalence of ADR is higher than previously reported in high-income countries. Disease-related factors followed by medication-related factors were shown to be the most important predictors of hospital-acquired ADRs. CCI and PIM showed the strongest association with ADR. The predictors of ADRs identified in our study were generally comparable with those reported by previous studies.

Plain language title

Conditions that predispose older patients to experience harmful effects from their medications while in hospital.

Plain language summary

Identifying the conditions that predispose older adults to incur harmful effects of their medications helps to plan on how best to predict, take precautions and closely follow up on them and thus, to prevent these undesirable outcomes. This study aimed to identify these conditions which determine which older adults are higher risk to incur these harmful undesirable effects of medicines. Everydayduring their hospital stay, we closely followed older patients who were 60 years and above from their entry to the hospital wards until they left the hospital. We interviewed the participants, reviewed their medication files and we also examined them physically to identify any unwanted and harmful outcome from their current medications. Out of 523 participants, almost half of them experienced at least one harmful or undesired effect related to their medicine. Conditions which predisposed them to experience a harmful effect from their medicines included being in age bracket of 60–75 years, having a history of experiencing harmful outcomes from medicines in the previous 1 year, taking a medication which was listed as potentially inappropriate for older adults, taking 5 or more medications concurrently, having a lower 10 years survival chance, having heart or kidney disease and a hospital stay > 10 days.

Development and Validation of ‘Prediction of Adverse Drug Reactions in Older Inpatients (PADROI)’ Risk Assessment Tool

Background

Adverse drug reactions (ADR) detection and prediction methods in hospitalized older adults remain imprecise. The identification of the risk factors for ADRs in this group of patients is crucial to develop plausible prediction models.

Objective

This study aimed at developing and validating a “Prediction of ADR in Older Inpatients (PADROI)” risk assessment tool in hospitalized older adults.

Methods and Materials

We had previously conducted a derivational study that aimed to determine the risk factors of ADRs in hospitalized older adults. We developed the PADROI model as a potential ADR risk assessment tool incorporating 8 predictors each given a score by rounding off the respective adjusted odds ratios (AORs) to the nearest whole number. Subsequently, we conducted another prospective cohort among adults aged 60 years and older admitted to Gynecology and Obstetrics, Medical, Oncology, Surgery, and Psychiatry wards at Mbarara Regional Referral Hospital (MRRH) from July 5 to September 17, 2021.

Results

A total of 124 participants, 70 females and 54 males aged 60–95 years, were included in this validation cohort; 62 of them experienced 90 ADRs. When applied to the derivational cohort, the area under receiver operating characteristic curve (AUROC) for the PADROI model was shown to be 0.896 (0.869–0.923; at 95% CI). In the validation study, AUROC of PADROI was 0.917 (0.864–0.971 at 95% CI; p < 0.001). Overall, PADROI correctly predicted 91.7% of those who experienced an ADR.

Conclusion

Using the adjusted odds ratios from our derivational cohort, we developed an ADR prediction tool (PADROI) that achieved an excellent AUROC (0.917), high sensitivity (87.1%) and specificity (90.3%). The current model demonstrated a high potential for clinical applicability which can be strengthened if similar results are reproduced in larger and multi-centered studies.

Challenges Faced by Clinicians in the Personalized Treatment Planning: A Literature Review and the First Results of the Russian National Cancer Program

Advances in cancer molecular profiling have enabled the development of more effective approaches to the diagnosis and personalized treatment of tumors. However, treatment planning has become more labor intensive, requiring hours or even days of clinician effort to optimize an individual patient case in a trial-and-error manner. Lessons learned from the world cancer programs provide insights into ways to develop approaches for the treatment strategy definition which can be introduced into clinical practice. This article highlights the variety of breakthroughs in patients' cancer treatment and some challenges that this field faces now in Russia. In this report, we consider the key characteristics for planning an optimal clinical treatment regimen and which should be included in the algorithm of clinical decision support systems. We discuss the perspectives of implementing artificial intelligence-based systems in cancer treatment planning in Russia.

Prevalence, Incidence, and Characteristics of Adverse Drug Reactions Among Older Adults Hospitalized at Mbarara Regional Referral Hospital, Uganda: A Prospective Cohort Study

Background

Adverse drug reactions (ADRs) are associated with significant clinical and economic effects. Among the elderly population, the risk for ADRs is even higher. Data of ADR prevalence and incidence among the elderly population in Uganda and many low- and middle-income countries are lacking.

Objective

This study determined the prevalence, incidence, and characteristics of ADRs among hospitalized elderly patients at Mbarara Regional Referral Hospital (MRRH), Uganda.

Methods and Materials

We conducted a prospective cohort of older adults admitted to medical, oncology, and surgery wards at MRRH for consecutive 6 months. The primary data were obtained by interviewing patients and caregivers and reviewing patient medication charts, taking vital signs, and physical examinations. We used Edwards and Aronson’s definition of ADR and the Naranjo ADR Causality Scale. We conducted descriptive statistics and the Kolmogorov–Smirnov test using SPSS Version 23.0.

Results

We studied a total of 523 older adults 60 to 103 years of age. During their hospital stay, 256 (48.9%) of the patients experienced at least one ADR. A total of 365 ADRs were identified during 4702 person-days of follow-up. The incidence of ADRs was 78 ADRs/1000 person-days. ADRs affecting the gastrointestinal tract were the most frequently (40.6%) identified categories. Probable and type A ADRs accounted for 260 (71.2%) and 305 (83.6%) of the total incidents, respectively. Overall, 237 (64.9%) of the ADRs were rated as mild, whereas 10 (2.8%) of them as severe. Lastly, 165 (45.2%) of the ADRs were categorized as preventable.

Conclusion

Almost half of the hospitalized patients aged 60 to 103 years experienced at least one ADR during their hospital stay, which is higher than has been previously documented. Almost three-thirds of the ADRs were probable, about 4 out of 5 were type A and almost two-thirds were mild. Nearly half of the ADRs were preventable.

Prevalence, characteristics and predicting risk factors of adverse drug reactions among hospitalized older adults: A systematic review and meta-analysis

BACKGROUND

Occurrence of adverse drug reactions is a major global health problem mostly affecting older adults. Identifying the magnitude and predictors of adverse drug reactions is crucial to developing strategies to mitigate the burden of adverse drug reactions. This study's objectives were to estimate and compare the prevalences of adverse drug reactions, to characterize them and to identify the predictors among hospitalized older adults.

METHODS

A comprehensive systematic literature search including both prevalence and risk factors of adverse drug reactions in hospitalized older adults was conducted using PubMed, Scopus and Google Scholar, involving all articles published in English. Descriptive statistics and comparison of means was performed using SPSS version 20.0 and metaprop command was performed in STATA version 13.0. Heterogeneity was assessed using I 2 statistic.

RESULTS

A total of 18 studies, involving 80,695 participants with a median age of 77 years, were included in this study. The pooled prevalence of adverse drug reaction was 22% (95% confidence interval: 17%, 28%; I 2 = 99.23%). Among high-income countries, the prevalence of adverse drug reactions was 29% (95% confidence interval: 16%, 42%) as compared to 19% (95% confidence interval: 14%-25%) in low and middle-income countries (p value = 0.176). Of the 620 adverse drug reactions categorized, most were type A (89%), which are generally predictable and preventable. Two-thirds (795, 67%) of the adverse drug reactions were probable and most (1194, 69%) were mild or moderate. The majority (60%) of the categorized adverse drug reactions were preventable and less than one-third (31%) were severe. The most consistently reported predictors of adverse drug reactions in hospitalized older patients were medication-related factors, including polypharmacy and potentially inappropriate medications followed by disease-related factors-renal failure, complex comorbidity, heart failure and liver failure.

CONCLUSION

Almost one-quarter of all hospitalized older adults experienced at least one adverse drug reaction during their hospital stay. The majority of the adverse drug reactions were preventable. Medication-related factors were the most consistently reported predictors of adverse drug reactions followed by disease-related factors.