Notable drug interactions added include opioids plus benzodiazepines or gabapentenoids.1 Use of the Beers list has not been convincingly shown to reduce morbidity, mortality, or cost but is often used by organizations as quality measures. The Beers criteria (named after Dr. Beers and not your Friday night escapades) is a guideline to help guide safe prescribing practices in the geriatric population. Polypharmacy and medication side effects are a common, and generally under-recognized, reason for patients to present to the emergency department. New medication interactions to note include opioids with benzodiazepines, gabapentin (Neurontin), or pregabalin (Lyrica) because of the risk of severe respiratory depression; phenytoin (Dilantin Originally conceived of in 1991 by the late Mark Beers, MD, a geriatrician, the Beers Criteria catalogues medications that cause side effects in the elderly due to the physiologic changes of aging. (i.e., 2012) Beers list. Update forthcoming. (Note: CMS high-risk med trimethobenzamide is no longer included on the 2015 Beers list.)--Information in table is from reference 1, unless otherwise specified.-- Drug or Drug Class Concern(s) Other C onsiderations (e.g., drug interactions, alternatives) b Analgesics (also see NSAIDs, below) HealthPartners List of Potentially Inappropriate Medications for the Elderly MEDICATION (includes combinations)1‐3 PRESCRIBING CONCERN1‐2 ALTERNATIVES4‐5 Antianxiety meprobamate Long‐acting benzodiazepines (chlordiazepoxide, diazepam, flurazepam) Possible dependence and sedation for meprobamate. The American Geriatrics Society Beers Criteria® for Potentially Inappropriate Medication Use in Older Adults is a list of medication guidelines that help healthcare providers safely prescribe medications for adults over age 65. The list of American Geriatrics Society Beers Criteria For Potentially Inappropriate Medication Use In Older Adults was reviewed by experts. The complete 2019 AGS Beers list is available in pdf for educators, doctors, clinicians, researchers, etc. BEST TOOL: The AGS Beers Criteria® include the same five main categories as in 2019 and previous updates: (1) potentially inappropriate medications in older adults; (2) potentially inappropriate medications to avoid in older adults with certain diseases or syndromes; (3) medications to be used with caution in older adults; (4) medication combina The Beers Criteria or “Beers List” has become a vital tool in our effort to improve the health of older adults. By identifying medications that have the potential to harm our elderly patients, we can proactively prevent medication-related harm. This list of potentially inappropriate medications (PIMs) provides guidance on how to optimize medication selection in older adults, and it can help meet a variety of healthcare needs: Clinicians: The criteria are an excellent tool to refer to before starting, increasing, or switching medications, or when simply performing a comprehensive The AGS Beers Criteria® comprises drugs and drug classes that the AGS and its expert panel consider to be potentially inappropriate medications (PIMs) for use in older adults. The expert panel organized the criteria into the same five general categories that were used in the 2019 update: 1. Medications considered as potentially inappropriate Alternatives for eers riteria High-Risk Medications in Older Adults Adapted from Hanlon, J. Semla, T., & Shmader, K. (2015) Alternative Medications for Medications in the Use of High-Risk Medications in the Elderly and Potentially Harmful Drug-Disease Interactions in the elderly Quality Measures. Journal of the American Geriatrics Society. 5 The Beers Criteria were developed by Mark Beers, MD, and colleagues at the University of 6 California Los Angeles in 1991, with the purpose of identifying medications for which potential 7 harm outweighed expected benefit and that should be avoided in nursing home residents. Since the Beers list was last published, newer agents for overactive bladder (OAB) have been developed. All OAB drugs should be avoided in patients with bladder outlet obstruction. For a listing of these agents see Detail-Documents #210209 (U.S.) and #220616 (Canada). To accompany the updated AGS Beers Criteria® in 2015, the AGS also developed a list of safer medications that are alternatives to some of the medications listed in the criteria. This first list of alternatives focuses on those medications that are used in various quality measures, which are used by America’s health plans to American Geriatrics Society 2015 Updated Beers Criteria for Potentially Inappropriate Medication Use in Older Adults. J Am Geriatr Soc. 2015 Nov;63(11):2227-46. 2Hanlon JT, Semla TP, Schmader KE. Alternative Medications for Medications in the Use of High-Risk Medications in the Elderly and Potentially Harmful Drug-Disease The AGS Beers Criteria® comprises drugs and drug classes that the AGS and its expert panel consider to be potentially inappropriate medications (PIMs) for use in older adults. The expert panel organized the criteria into the same five general categories that were used in the 2019 update: Again, this is by no means an exhaustive list, but it gives you an idea of some of the common medications that meet Beers criteria and some context around the risks for elderly patients. As you look up medications in your drug guide any reputable guide will state if a medication is a Beers drug. And when in doubt, you can always confirm with Recently, the American Geriatrics Society (AGS) released the 2023 AGS Beers Criteria ® for Potentially Inappropriate Medication Use in Older Adults. For more than 20 years, the Beers Criteria ® have been a valuable resource for healthcare providers about the safety of prescribing drugs for older people.
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