Table 2:

Changes in drug use during 10-year follow-up, stratified by age

IndicatorOverall, mean (95% CI)
n = 36 628		Age group, yr, mean (95% CI)p value*
65–74
n = 28 611		75–84
n = 7 583		Aged ≥ 85
n = 434
No. of drugs2.05 (2.01 to 2.09)2.14 (2.10 to 2.19)1.79 (1.70 to 1.88)0.71 (0.36 to 1.05)< 0.001
Women1.88 (1.83 to 1.93)1.97 (1.91 to 2.03)1.64 (1.52 to 1.76)0.61 (0.21 to 1.01)
Men2.24 (2.18 to 2.30)†2.33 (2.27 to 2.40)†1.96 (1.82 to 2.09)†0.86 (0.23 to 1.48)
No. of PIMs0.14 (0.13 to 0.16)0.16 (0.15 to 0.18)0.09 (0.06 to 0.08)−0.15 (−0.26 to −0.04)< 0.001
Women0.10 (0.08 to 0.11)0.11 (0.09 to 0.13)0.06 (0.02 to 0.10)−0.12 (−0.25 to 0.01)
Men0.19 (0.18 to 0.21)†0.22 (0.20 to 0.24)†0.12 (0.08 to 0.17)‡−0.20 (−0.39 to 0.00)
ARS score0.19 (0.18 to 0.21)0.20 (0.18 to 0.21)0.19 (0.16 to 0.22)0.14 (0.04 to 0.23)0.4
Women0.18 (0.16 to 0.19)0.18 (0.16 to 0.20)0.17 (0.13 to 0.20)0.11 (0.01 to 0.21)
Men0.21 (0.20 to 0.23)0.22 (0.19 to 0.24)0.21 (0.17 to 0.26)0.18 (0.01 to 0.35)

  • Note: ARS = anticholinergic risk scale, CI = confidence interval, PIM = potentially inappropriate medication.

  • ↵* Kruskal–Wallis test for comparison among age groups.

  • ↵† Wilcoxon rank-sum test comparison to women, p < 0.001.

  • ↵‡ Wilcoxon rank-sum test comparison to women, p < 0.05.