Geriatric content in pharmacotherapy and therapeutics textbooks.

Full Abstract

OBJECTIVES:
To determine the extent to which therapeutics textbooks address age-related medication information.

METHODS:
Criteria for 5 disease states prevalent among geriatric patients were developed based on the content of a geriatric textbook and from expert reviewers' input. The criteria were used to determine the degree to which geriatric content was addressed in 3 therapeutics textbooks.

RESULTS:
The therapeutics textbooks contained less than half of the critical points for 3 disease states:
chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, heart failure, and diabetes mellitus (31%, 33%, and 46%, respectively). In addition, the textbooks addressed only one half to two thirds of the criteria for the remaining 2 disease states of osteoarthritis and dementia (55% and 68%, respectively). Criteria specific to the elderly were addressed less often than criteria that were important but not unique to the elderly (38% and 63%, respectively).

CONCLUSIONS:
Current therapeutics textbooks have significant gaps in geriatric medication information. Users of these textbooks must supplement them with primary literature or a geriatric textbook for more comprehensive medication therapy management information.

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Author information

Author/s: Mort, Jane R (JR); Delafuente, Jeffrey C (JC); Odegard, Peggy Soule (PS);

Affiliation: College of Pharmacy, South Dakota State University, Sioux Falls SD 57107, USA. jane.mort(-atsign-)sdstate.edu

Journal and publication information

Publication Type: Journal Article

Journal: American journal of pharmaceutical education (Am J Pharm Educ), published in United States. (Language: eng)

Reference: 2006-Dec; vol 70 (issue 6) : pp 130

Dates: Created 2007/03/02; Completed 2007/03/29; Revised 2008/11/20;

PMID: 17332856, status: MEDLINE (last retrieval date: 12/26/2008)

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MeSH headings (categories)

This article was linked to the MESH Headings shown below.

Aged
Drug Therapy
Geriatrics - education

Geriatrics - education
Humans
Textbooks as Topic

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