ArticleDrugs & aging2013
Prevention of inappropriate prescribing in hospitalized older patients using a computerized prescription support system (INTERcheck(®)).
Article in Drugs & aging, 2013. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 42 papers, 9 of them syntheses that pooled it.
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Who cites it
42 citing papers in PubMed, 9 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 88 citations in OpenAlex.
- Deterministic and stochastic interventions in reducing drug-drug interactions in inappropriate prescribing: A systematic review.PloS one · 2026Pooled it
- A NASSS framework-guided systematic review and exploratory modelling of digital health interventions for polypharmacy management in older adults.BMC geriatrics · 2025Pooled it
- Deprescribing Anticholinergic Medications in Hospitalised Older Adults: A Systematic Review.Basic & clinical pharmacology & toxicology · 2025Pooled it
- The Prognostic Utility of Anticholinergic Burden Scales: An Integrative Review and Gap Analysis.Drugs & aging · 2023Pooled it
- Prevalence of drug interactions in hospitalised elderly patients: a systematic review.European journal of hospital pharmacy : science and practice · 2021Pooled it
- Reducing Potentially Inappropriate Prescriptions for Older Patients Using Computerized Decision Support Tools: Systematic Review.Journal of medical Internet research · 2019Pooled it
- Interventions to Optimise Prescribing in Older People with Dementia: A Systematic Review.Drugs & aging · 2019Pooled it
- Information Technology-Based Interventions to Improve Drug-Drug Interaction Outcomes: A Systematic Review on Features and Effects.Journal of medical systems · 2017Pooled it
- Prevalence of statin-drug interactions in older people: a systematic review.European journal of clinical pharmacology · 2016Pooled it
- Appropriateness of oral anticoagulant therapy prescription and its associated factors in hospitalized older people with atrial fibrillation.British journal of clinical pharmacology · 2018Trial
- Reduction in targeted potentially inappropriate medication use in elderly inpatients: a pragmatic randomized controlled trial.European journal of clinical pharmacology · 2017Trial
- E-learning in order to improve drug prescription for hospitalized older patients: a cluster-randomized controlled study.British journal of clinical pharmacology · 2016Trial
- Clinical decision support systems for polypharmacy optimization in older patients: a narrative review.European journal of clinical pharmacology · 2026Review
- Polypharmacy in Elderly Patients Receiving First-Line Treatment for Pancreatic Adenocarcinoma: Analysis of Potential Drug-Drug Interactions and Outcome.Oncology research · 2026Article
- Attitudes, barriers, and facilitators toward tools supporting appropriate prescribing among healthcare professionals: a cross-sectional study.European journal of clinical pharmacology · 2025Article
- Impact of a Clinical Decision Support System on the Change over Time in the Anticholinergic Load in Geriatric Patients: The SADP-Antichol Study.Pharmacy (Basel, Switzerland) · 2024Article
- Polypharmacy Management in Chronic Conditions: A Systematic Literature Review of Italian Interventions.Journal of clinical medicine · 2024Review
- Polypharmacy, drug-drug interactions, anticholinergic burden and cognitive outcomes: a snapshot from a community-dwelling sample of older men and women in northern Italy.European journal of ageing · 2024Article
- Anticholinergic Burden and Cognitive Impairment in Nursing Homes: A Comparison of Four Anticholinergic Scales.Drugs & aging · 2023Article
- The role of INTERCheckWEB digital innovation in supporting polytherapy management.Scientific reports · 2023Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
10 authors at 4 institutions in 2 countries.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundPolypharmacy is very common among older adults and can lead to inappropriate prescribing, poor adherence to treatment, adverse drug events and the prevalence of potential drug-drug interactions (DDIs). Electronic prescription database software may help to prevent inappropriate prescribing and minimize the occurrence of adverse drug reactions. INTERcheck(®) is a Computerized Prescription Support System (CPSS) developed in order to optimize drug prescription for elderly people with multimorbidity.
objectivesThe objectives of this study were (i) to evaluate the applicability of INTERcheck(®) as a means of reviewing the pharmacological profiles of elderly patients hospitalized in an acute geriatric ward in Northern Italy; and (ii) to evaluate the effectiveness of INTERcheck(®) in reducing potentially inappropriate medications (PIMs), potentially severe DDIs and the anticholinergic burden in daily practice.
methodsTwo samples of elderly patients (aged 65+ years) hospitalized in a geriatric ward in Italy were enrolled throughout 2012. During the first (observation) phase, medications prescribed to 74 patients at admission and discharge were analyzed with INTERCheck(®) without any kind of interference based on information obtained from the software. During the second (intervention) phase, the treatment of 60 patients was reviewed and changed at discharge according to INTERCheck(®) suggestions.
resultsIn the observational period, the number of patients exposed to at least one PIM remained unchanged on both admission (n = 29; 39.1 %) and discharge (n = 28; 37.8 %). In the intervention phase, 25 patients (41.7 %) were exposed to at least one PIM at admission and 7 (11.6 %) at discharge (p < 0.001). The number of patients exposed to at least one potentially severe DDI decreased from 27 (45.0 %) to 20 (33.3 %), although the difference was not statistically significant (p = 0.703), while the number of new-onset potentially severe DDIs decreased from 37 (59.0 %) to 9 (33.0 %) [p < 0.001].
conclusionsThe use of INTERCheck(®) was associated with a significant reduction in PIMs and new-onset potentially severe DDIs. CPSSs combining different prescribing quality measures should be considered as an important strategy for optimizing medication prescription for elderly patients.
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