The elderly and drugs

Question 1

There are 5 ways that drugs interact with the elderly in different ways to the younget population. What are they?

Answer 1

Adverse reactions - other meds, eg warfarin, NSAIDS and ulcers

Achlorydia - Reduced stomach acid so less absorption, eg antifungals or tetracycline. Similarly, less hepatic flow

Distribution - More fat with age so more distribution of lipophilic drugs higher volume of distribution

• Hepatic metabolism *-P450 metabolism reduced with age so longer half life
• Renal metabolism* - Renal function declines with age and be aware of CC as muscle density decreaes so it may appear normal but is slow

Pharmacodynamics - eg warfarin

Poor compliance