Title:Medications Affecting Functional Status in Older Persons
Volume: 20
Issue: 19
Author(s): Andrea Corsonello, Graziano Onder, Marcello Maggio, Francesco Corica and Fabrizia Lattanzio
Affiliation:
Keywords:
Functional status, adverse drug reactions, ACE inhibitors, CNS agents, sarcopenia, metabolic agents, CNS drugs, hormones,
cardiovascular drugs.
Abstract: Current evidence suggests that functional status is an important outcome of pharmacologic treatments in older people. At the
moment, studies have shown diverse effects of medications on functional status. For example, some have shown potentially detrimental
effects, while others have found improvements on physical function in elders. Overall, suboptimal prescribing and the occurrence of adverse
drug reactions (ADRs) may negatively affect functional status. The use of selected drugs acting on central nervous system (CNS),
e.g. benzodiazepines and antipsychotics, is generally associated with an increased risk of functional decline. The greater sensitivity of
older people to these drugs, together with age-related changes in pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics, account for the observed detrimental
effect and suggests a cautious approach to older and frail patients when prescribing CNS agents. On the other hand, selected
drugs may slow or delay functional decline in older people. In particular, drugs aimed at targeting sarcopenia (loss in muscle mass and
strength), such as testosterone in androgen deficiency, ACE-inhibitors, vitamin D and β-hydroxy β-methyl butyrate (HMB), as well as the
recently developed selective androgen receptor modulators (SARMs) may hold extreme importance. This review will provide available
evidence of the diverse impacts of drug medications on functional status in older persons.
