Risks associated with the use of antimicrobials in elderly

Authors

  • Rocío Fernández Urrusuno Farmacéutica de Atención Primaria, Servicio de Farmacia, Distrito Aljarafe. Sevilla. España.
  • Susana Corral Baena Farmacéutica especialista en Farmacia Hospitalaria. Servicio de Farmacia. Hospital San Juan de Dios del Aljarafe. Bormujos. España.
  • María Carmen Montero Balosa Farmacéutica de Atención Primaria, Servicio de Farmacia, Distrito Aljarafe. Sevilla. España.
  • Laura Llamas Rodríguez Enfermera. Máster en Atención Farmacéutica Universidad de Sevilla, Sevilla. España.
  • Carmen Serrano Martino Farmacéutica especialista en Microbiología Clínica. Laboratorio de MIcrobiología. Hospital San Juan de Dios del Aljarafe. Bormujos. España.
  • Macarena Flores Dorado Farmacéutica de Atención Primaria, Servicio de Farmacia, Distrito Aljarafe. Sevilla. España.

Keywords:

Antibiotics, Older people, Community infections, Adverse drug reactions

Abstract

Aim: Describe the most important physiological changes associated with aging, the characteristics of infections in these patients and the most common side effects and severe interactions with antimicrobials in older people.

Material and methods: We conducted a literature review on the risks associated with the use of antibiotics in the elderly. The information was based on the update of the scientific evidence and information from the drug Sheets. The search was limited to the past 11 years, selected papers published in English, Spanish or French. We performed an electronic search of secondary sources (systematic reviews) and a manual search “ad hoc” basis of the literature retrieved, primary studies, reports of drug evaluation agencies, clinical practice guidelines and documents of Scientific Societies. Information sources: Pubmed, Embase, Iowa Drug Information Service (IDIS), WinSPIRS 5.00, Up to Date, The Cochrane Library®.

Results: We identified 321 results, after eliminating those who did not meet inclusion criteria 52 papers in addition to the technical specifications of all mentioned antibiotics were included in the literature review.

Conclusion: Older patients can acquire infections more frequently multi-resistant pathogens and suffer more serious complications of infections. The antibiotics is a group of drugs sensitive to the physiological changes induced by aging, which may influence the response to these and often requires dosage modifications to avoid poisoning and / or therapeutic failures. This paper provides information on these physiological changes and risks of antibiotics in the elderly, aspects necessary to choose a proper treatment.

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Published

2013-09-20

How to Cite

1.
Fernández Urrusuno R, Corral Baena S, Montero Balosa MC, Llamas Rodríguez L, Serrano Martino C, Flores Dorado M. Risks associated with the use of antimicrobials in elderly. Ars Pharm [Internet]. 2013 Sep. 20 [cited 2024 Jul. 20];54(3):23-40. Available from: https://revistaseug.ugr.es/index.php/ars/article/view/4646

Issue

Vol. 54 No. 3 (2013)

Section

Review Articles

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