ArticleBMJ open2018
Factors associated with polypharmacy in primary care: a cross-sectional analysis of data from The English Longitudinal Study of Ageing (ELSA).
Article in BMJ open, 2018. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 51 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
51 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 91 citations in OpenAlex.
- Personality traits and polypharmacy: meta-analysis of five samples.Psychology & health · 2025Pooled it
- Trial
- Effectiveness of Bundled Hyperpolypharmacy Deprescribing Compared With Usual Care Among Older Adults: A Randomized Clinical Trial.JAMA network open · 2023Trial
- Potentially Inappropriate Medication Use in Older Adults in Primary Care According to Four Explicit Criteria: Associations with Patient Factors.Medicina (Kaunas, Lithuania) · 2026Observational
- Association Between Oral Frailty and Body Mass Index in Late-Stage Older Adults Stratified by Sarcopenia Status.Nutrients · 2026Article
- Evaluation of polypharmacy and potentially inappropriate medication use among geriatric individuals aged 80 years and older.BMC geriatrics · 2026Article
- Resistant and Refractory Obesity: The Complexity of Anti-Obesity Therapy Failure.International journal of molecular sciences · 2026Review
- Prescribed Medication Burden by Tobacco Smoking and E-Cigarette Use Status.Health science reports · 2026Article
- Socioeconomic deprivation and its association with polypharmacy in England: results from a national cross-sectional survey.International journal of clinical pharmacy · 2026Article
- Cross-Sectional Study on Factors Associated with Hyperpolypharmacy and Medication Adherence in Older Adults with Multimorbidity and Polypharmacy.Drugs & aging · 2026Article
- A Scoping Review on the Prevalence of Potentially Inappropriate Medication and Polypharmacy among Older People in a Lower-middle Income Country.JMA journal · 2025Review
- Polypharmacy and Potentially Inappropriate Medications in Adults ≥75 Years of Age by Dementia and Frailty Status: The ARIC Study.Mayo Clinic proceedings · 2025Article
- Community-level social capital and polypharmacy among public assistance recipients in Japan: A multilevel cross-sectional study.SSM - population health · 2025Article
- Polypharmacy and Potentially Inappropriate Medication in Iranian People With Metabolic Syndrome: Epidemiological Aspects and Related Factors, a Multi-Level Cross-Sectional National Study.Health science reports · 2025Article
- Polypharmacy Prevalence Among Older Adults Based on the Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe: An Update.Journal of clinical medicine · 2025Article
- Understanding polypharmacy for people receiving home care services: a scoping review of the evidence.Age and ageing · 2025Article
- Polypharmacy in elective lumbar spinal surgery for degenerative conditions with 24-month follow-up.Scientific reports · 2024Article
- Polypharmacy and potentially inappropriate medications in older adults who use long-term care services: a cross-sectional study.BMC geriatrics · 2024Article
- Factors Associated with Hyperpolypharmacy and Complex Medication Regimens in Kidney Transplant Recipients.Journal of clinical medicine · 2024Article
- Association between polypharmacy and chronic kidney disease among community-dwelling older people: a longitudinal study in southern China.BMC nephrology · 2024Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
4 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
objectivesWhile older age and ill health are known to be associated with polypharmacy, this paper aims to identify whether wealth, body mass index (BMI), smoking and alcohol consumption are also associated with polypharmacy (5-9 prescribed medications) and hyperpolypharmacy prevalence (≥10 prescribed medications), among older people living in England.
designCross-sectional study.
settingThe English Longitudinal Study of Ageing Wave 6 (2012-2013).
participants7730 participants aged over 50 years. DATA SYNTHESIS: Two multivariate models were created. HR with corresponding 95% CI, for polypharmacy and hyperpolypharmacy, were calculated after adjusting for gender, age, wealth, smoking, alcohol consumption, BMI, self-rated health and the presence of a chronic health condition.
resultsLower wealth (lowest wealth quintile vs highest wealth quintile, adjusted HR 1.28; 95% CI 1.04 to 1.69, P=0.02) and obesity (adjusted HR 1.81; 95% CI 1.53 to 2.15, p<0.01) were significantly associated with polypharmacy. Increasing age (50-59 years vs 70-79 years, adjusted HR 3.42; 95% CI 2.81 to 4.77, p<0.01) and the presence of a chronic health condition (adjusted HR 2.94; 95% CI 2.55 to 3.39, p<0.01) were also associated with polypharmacy. No statistically significant association between smoking and polypharmacy (adjusted HR 1.06; 95% CI 0.86 to 1.29, P=0.56) was established; while, very frequent alcohol consumption (consuming alcohol >5 times per week) was inversely associated with polypharmacy (never drank alcohol vs very frequently, adjusted HR 0.64; 95% CI 0.52 to 0.78, p<0.01). The adjusted HR for hyperpolypharmacy was accentuated, compared with polypharmacy.
conclusionThis study has identified that lower wealth, obesity, increasing age and chronic health conditions are significantly associated with polypharmacy and hyperpolypharmacy prevalence. The effect of these factors, on polypharmacy and especially hyperpolypharmacy prevalence, is likely to become more pronounced with the widening gap in UK wealth inequalities, the current obesity epidemic and the growing population of older people. The alcohol findings contribute to the debate on the relationship between alcohol consumption and health.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.