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Polypharmazie und Stürze im Alter

Polypharmacy and falls in the Elderly

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Summary

Falls and their consequences are a major problem in geriatric medicine. Main causes are the combination of age-related physiological changes with multimorbidity and subsequent polypharmacy. Elderly patients are more susceptible to adverse drug effects and have less compensatory capacity than younger adults. Therefore careful monitoring of side effects is indicated and prescribing for elderly patients calls for alertness in order to identify symptoms as possible adverse drug effects.

Zusammenfassung

Stürze und ihre Folgen gehören zu den Hauptproblemen der Geriatrie. Neben altersphysiologischen Veränderungen spielt Multimorbidität und die sich daraus ergebende Polypharmazie dabei eine wesentliche Rolle. Ältere Menschen zeigen eine erhöhte Empfindlichkeit für Nebenwirkungen und eine verminderte Kompensationsfähigkeit in der Aufrechterhaltung der Homöostase. Deshalb ist eine erhöhte Aufmerksamkeit für mögliche unerwünschte Nebenwirkungen oder Interaktionen und eine verstärkte begleitende Kontrolle notwendiger Dauermedikation notwendig.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Abteilung für Akutgeriatrie, Krankenhaus Hietzing mit Neurologischem Zentrum Rosenhügel, Wien, Austria

    Ulrike Sommeregger

  2. Universitätsklinik für Geriatrie, Paracelsus Medizinische Privatuniversität, Salzburg, Austria

    Bernhard Iglseder

  3. Anstaltsapotheke, Krankenhaus Hietzing mit Neurologischem Zentrum Rosenhügel, Wien, Austria

    Birgit Böhmdorfer

  4. Abteilung für Innere Medizin und Akutgeriatrie, Landeskrankenhaus Hochzirl, Zirl, Austria

    Ursula Benvenuti-Falger, Monika Lechleitner & Markus Gosch

  5. Abteilung für Akutgeriatrie/Remobilisation, Landeskrankenhaus Gmunden, Gmunden, Austria

    Peter Dovjak

  6. Universitätsklinik für Innere Medizin, Medizinische Universität Graz, Graz, Austria

    Ronald Otto & Regina E. Roller

Authors
  1. Ulrike Sommeregger
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  2. Bernhard Iglseder
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  3. Birgit Böhmdorfer
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  4. Ursula Benvenuti-Falger
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  5. Peter Dovjak
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  6. Monika Lechleitner
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  7. Ronald Otto
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  8. Regina E. Roller
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  9. Markus Gosch
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Correspondence to Markus Gosch.

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Sommeregger, U., Iglseder, B., Böhmdorfer, B. et al. Polypharmazie und Stürze im Alter. Wien Med Wochenschr 160, 293–296 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10354-010-0789-y

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10354-010-0789-y

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