高齡常見用藥問題

Common Medication Use Problems Among the Elderly

台灣預計在2025年邁入超高齡社會，未來65歲以上老年人口將占總人口20%。老年人通常伴隨著多重用藥，然而老化帶來的身心改變可能影響藥物在體內的吸收、分佈、代謝與排除，促使高齡用藥成為急需被重視的議題。
常見的高齡用藥問題包含藥物不遵從性、藥物不良事件、多重用藥、不適當藥物、對藥物的信念、缺乏藥物知識和意識等，問題不只涉及患者本身的社會經濟地位、知識水準、更與患者和醫療人員的信賴程度有關。上述各個用藥問題間同時環環相扣，使高齡用藥成為複雜難解的議題，如何避免高齡用藥問題，以確保老年人在醫療使用上的有效性與安全性，已然成為醫療人員與患者間的最大挑戰。

Taiwan is expected to enter a super-aged society in 2025. In the future, the elderly will become the main group using medical care, which the medicine is necessary. However, the physical and mental changes caused by aging may affect the absorption, distribution, metabolism and elimination of drugs in the body, making drug use in the elderly an issue that urgently needs attention.
Common medication problems for the elderly include medication nonadherence, adverse drug events, polypharmacy, inappropriate medications, belief about medications, and lacking of knowledge and awareness about medications. The problems not only involve the patient's socioeconomic status and knowledge level, but also the relationship between the patient and the medical professionals, such as the degree of trust of medical personnel. The medication problems mentioned above are also interrelated at the same time, making medication in the elderly a complex and difficult issue. How to avoid medication problems in the elderly and ensure the effectiveness and safety of medical use has become the big challenge between medical professionals and patients.