Description of the Obstacles to Deprescribing Among French Patients Over 75 Years of Age Treated in the Geriatric Hospital Network

For several years now, the proportion of senior citizens in our country has been rising steadily. There are now 6.4 million people over the age of 75 in France.

It is therefore important to take into account the needs and specificities of this part of the population. One of its particularities is polypathology. Indeed, from the age of 70 onwards, 93% of elderly subjects have at least 2 diseases and 85% have at least 3. This polypathology will lead to a large number of different prescribers with an increased risk of having more than 5 molecules in their personal treatment. This is known as polypharmacy.

In the elderly, polypharmacy is harmful. It increases the risk of adverse effects and drug interactions. In France, 20% of patients over 75 years old and 25% of those over 85 years old consult the emergency room because of adverse drug reactions.

The literature shows that we can act on these adverse events by "deprescribing". De-prescribing is defined as intentionally stopping the prescription of an unnecessary or potentially dangerous drug for a patient.

The expected benefit for the patient is to reduce the iatrogenic risks induced by treatments that would no longer be useful for him/her or that have a negative benefit/risk balance. To achieve this objective, the patient must understand this risk, understand the benefit he or she can derive from it and be an actor in this process.