Seniors five times more likely to be hospitalized for adverse drug reactions

One in 200 seniors was hospitalized because of an adverse drug reaction (ADR) in 2010–2011, compared with 1 in 1,000 of all other Canadians. This translates to approximately 27,000 people age 65 and older, according to the Canadian Institute for Health Information (CIHI). Blood thinners, often used to prevent heart attack and stroke, were the drug class most commonly associated with ADR-related hospitalizations among seniors (12.6%). This was followed by chemotherapy drugs (12.1%) and opioids, a class of strong pain killers (7.4%). The most likely reasons for hospitalization varied based on the drug class. They included bleeding from blood thinners, low white blood cell count from chemotherapy drugs and constipation from opioids. Read more here.

Source mentioned: Canadian Institute for Health Information. Adverse Drug Reaction-Related Hospitalizations Among Seniors, 2006 to 2011. Ottawa. 2013 Mar 26. Download report.