BACKGROUND

Polypharmacy and the use of high-alert medications in patients with nasally placed feeding tube (NPFT) increase the risks of drug related problems.

OBJECTIVE

Characterize drugs prescribed to patients with NPFT and compare the rates of polypharmacy and high-alert medication use at admission and hospital discharge.

DESIGN AND SETTING

Multicenter cross-sectional study with 327 participants.

METHODS

Data of patients with NPFT were obtained from the medical records and recorded in an electronic data collection tool. Mean number of drugs, polypharmacy and number of high-alert medications prescribed on admission and at discharge were compared using Wilcoxon or McNemar's tests. Generalized Estimating Equations analyzed the relationship between polypharmacy and high-alert medications according to age and time point. Primary reason for hospital admission, level of consciousness, severity of comorbid diseases and patient care complexity were also assessed.

RESULTS

Most patients were male, older people, hospitalized for circulatory system diseases and had at least one comorbidity. On admission, a significant number of patients were alert (59.9%), at high risk for death (43.1%) and high dependent on nursing care (35.4%). Additionally, 92% patients were on polypharmacy on admission, versus 84.7% at hospital discharge ( = 0,0011). The occurrence of polypharmacy was independent of age ( = 0.2377). >17% of all drugs prescribed were high-alert medications, with no statistically significant difference between admission and discharge (p = 0,3957). There was no statistical evidence that the use of high-alert medications increases with age ( = 0,5426).

CONCLUSIONS

These results support the planning of multidisciplinary qualified actions for patients using NPFT.