The Impact of Multimedia Education on Uptake of Comprehensive Eye Examinations in Rural China: A Randomized, Controlled Trial

PURPOSE: To study the effect of multimedia education on acceptance of comprehensive eye examinations (CEEs), critical for detecting glaucoma and diabetic eye disease, among rural Chinese patients using a randomized, controlled design.
METHODS: Patients aged ≥40 years were recruited from 52 routine clinic sessions (26 intervention, 26 control) conducted at seven rural hospitals in Guangdong, China. Subjects answered demographic questionnaires, were tested on knowledge about CEEs and chronic eye disease, and were told the cost of examination (range US$0-8). At intervention sessions, subjects were cluster-randomized to view a 10-minute video on the value of CEEs and retested. Control subjects were not retested. Trial outcomes were acceptance of CEEs (primary outcome) and final knowledge scores (secondary outcome).
RESULTS: At baseline, >70% (p = 0.70) of both intervention (n = 241, 61.2 ± 12.3 years) and control (n = 218, 58.4 ± 11.7 years) subjects answered no knowledge questions correctly, but mean scores on the test (maximum 5 points) increased by 1.39 (standard deviation 0.12) points (p < 0.001) after viewing the video. Intervention (73.0%) and control (72.9%) subjects did not differ in acceptance of CEEs (p > 0.50). In mixed-effect logistic regression models, acceptance of CEEs was associated with availability of free CEEs (odds ratio 18.3, 95% confidence interval 1.32-253.0), but not group assignment or knowledge score. Acceptance was 97.5% (79/81) when free exams were offered.
CONCLUSIONS: Education increased knowledge about but not acceptance of CEEs, which was generally high. Making CEEs free could further increase acceptance.

Disordered sleep and myopia risk among Chinese children

PURPOSE: Disordered sleep and myopia are increasingly prevalent among Chinese children. Similar pathways may be involved in regulation of both sleep cycles and eye growth. We therefore sought to examine the association between disordered sleep and myopia in this group. METHODS: Urban primary school children participating in a clinical trial on myopia and outdoor activity underwent automated cycloplegic refraction with subjective refinement. Parents answered questions about children's sleep duration, sleep disorders (Children's Sleep Habits Questionnaire [CSHQ]), near work and time spent outdoors. RESULTS: Among 1970 children, 1902 (96.5%, mean [standard deviation SD] age 9.80 [0.44] years, 53.1% boys) completed refraction and questionnaires. Myopia < = -0.50 Diopters was present in both eyes of 588 (30.9%) children (1329/3804 = 34.9% of eyes) and 1129 children (59.4%) had abnormal CSHQ scores (> 41). In logistic regression models by eye, odds of myopia < = -0.50D increased with worse CSHQ score (Odds Ratio [OR] 1.01 per point, 95% Confidence Interval [CI] [1.001, 1.02], P = 0.014) and more night-time sleep (OR 1.02, 95% CI [1.01, 1.04, P = 0.002], while male sex (OR 0.82, 95% CI [0.70, 0.95], P = 0.008) and time outdoors (OR = 0.97, 95% CI [0.95, 0.99], P = 0.011) were associated with less myopia. The association between sleep duration and myopia was not significant (p = 0.199) for total (night + midday) sleep. CONCLUSIONS: Myopia and disordered sleep were both common in this cohort, but we did not find consistent evidence for an association between the two. TRIAL REGISTRATION: clinicaltrials.gov NCT00848900.

Age-related prevalence and met need for correctable and uncorrectable near vision impairment in a multi-country study

Purpose: To estimate the prevalence, potential determinants, and proportion of met need for near vision impairment (NVI) correctable with refraction approximately 2 years after initial examination of a multi-country cohort. Design: Population-based, prospective cohort study. Participants: People aged ≥35 years examined at baseline in semi-rural (Shunyi) and urban (Guangzhou) sites in China; rural sites in Nepal (Kaski), India (Madurai), and Niger (Dosso); a semi-urban site (Durban) in South Africa; and an urban site (Los Angeles) in the United States. Methods: Near visual acuity (NVA) with and without current near correction was measured at 40 cm using a logarithm of the minimum angle of resolution near vision tumbling E chart. Participants with uncorrected binocular NVA ≤20/40 were tested with plus sphere lenses to obtain best-corrected binocular NVA. Main Outcome Measures: Prevalence of total NVI (defined as uncorrected NVA ≤20/40) and NVI correctable and uncorrectable to >20/40, and current spectacle wearing among those with bilateral NVA ≤20/63 improving to >20/40 with near correction (met need). Results: Among 13 671 baseline participants, 10 533 (77.2%) attended the follow-up examination. The prevalence of correctable NVI increased with age from 35 to 50-60 years and then decreased at all sites. Multiple logistic regression modeling suggested that correctable NVI was not associated with gender at any site, whereas more educated persons aged >54 years were associated with a higher prevalence of correctable NVI in Nepal and India. Although near vision spectacles were provided free at baseline, wear among those who could benefit was <40% at all but 2 centers (Guangzhou and Los Angeles). Conclusions: Prevalence of correctable NVI is greatest among persons of working age, and rates of correction are low in many settings, suggesting that strategies targeting the workplace may be needed.

Heritability of refractive error and familial aggregation of myopia in an elderly American population.

PURPOSE: To determine the heritability of refractive error and the familial aggregation of myopia in an older population. METHODS: Seven hundred fifty-nine siblings (mean age, 73.4 years) in 241 families were recruited from the Salisbury Eye Evaluation (SEE) Study in eastern Maryland. Refractive error was determined by noncycloplegic subjective refraction (if presenting distance visual acuity was < or =20/40) or lensometry (if best corrected visual acuity was >20/40 with spectacles). Participants were considered plano (refractive error of zero) if uncorrected visual acuity was >20/40. Preoperative refraction from medical records was used for pseudophakic subjects. Heritability of refractive error was calculated with multivariate linear regression and was estimated as twice the residual between-sibling correlation after adjusting for age, gender, and race. Logistic regression models were used to estimate the odds ratio (OR) of myopia, given a myopic sibling relative to having a nonmyopic sibling. RESULTS: The estimated heritability of refractive error was 61% (95% confidence interval [CI]: 34%-88%) in this population. The age-, race-, and sex-adjusted ORs of myopia were 2.65 (95% CI: 1.67-4.19), 2.25 (95% CI: 1.31-3.87), 3.00 (95% CI: 1.56-5.79), and 2.98 (95% CI: 1.51-5.87) for myopia thresholds of -0.50, -1.00, -1.50, and -2.00 D, respectively. Neither race nor gender was significantly associated with an increased risk of myopia. CONCLUSIONS: Refractive error and myopia are highly heritable in this elderly population.

The association between myopia and various subtypes of lens opacity: SEE (Salisbury Eye Evaluation) project.

PURPOSE: To establish the relationship between myopia and lens opacity. DESIGN: Population-based cross-sectional study. PARTICIPANTS: Two thousand five hundred twenty participants from the Salisbury Eye Evaluation aged 65 to 84 years. METHODS: Participants filled out questionnaires regarding medical history, social habits, and a detailed history of distance spectacle wear. They underwent a full ocular examination. Lens photographs were taken for assessment of lens opacity using the Wilmer grading system. Multivariate logistic regression models using generalized estimating equations were used to analyze the relationship between lens opacity type and degree of myopia, while accounting for potential confounders. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Presence of posterior subcapsular opacity, cortical opacity, or nuclear opacity. RESULTS: Significant associations were found between myopia and both nuclear and posterior subcapsular opacities. For nuclear opacity, the odds ratios (ORs) were 2.25 for myopia between -0.50 diopters (D) and -1.99 D (P<0.001), 3.65 for myopia between -2.00 D and -3.99 D (P<0.001), 4.54 for myopia between -4.00 D and -5.99 D (P<0.001), and 3.61 for myopia -6.00 D or more (P = 0.002). For posterior subcapsular cataracts, ORs were 1.59 for myopia between -0.50 D and -1.99 D (P = 0.11), 3.22 for myopia between -2.00 D and -3.99 D (P = 0.002), 5.36 for myopia between -4.00 D and -5.99 D (P<0.001), and 12.34 for myopia -6.00 D or more (P<0.001). No association was found between myopia and cortical opacity. The association between posterior subcapsular opacity and myopia was equally strong for those wearing glasses by age 21 years and for those without glasses; for nuclear opacity, significantly higher ORs were found for myopes who started wearing glasses after age 21. CONCLUSIONS: These results confirm the previously reported association between myopia, posterior subcapsular opacity, and nuclear opacity. Furthermore, the strong association between early spectacle wear and posterior subcapsular opacity among myopes, absent for nuclear opacity, suggests that myopia may precede opacity in the case of posterior subcapsular opacity, but not nuclear opacity. Measures of association between posterior subcapsular opacity and myopia were stronger in the current study than have previously been found. Longitudinal studies to confirm the association are warranted.

Impact of cataract screening outreach in rural China.

PURPOSE: To examine differences between patients with cataract detected during screening and presenting to clinic in rural China. METHODS: Subjects were recruited from 27 screenings and an eye clinic in the same town. All had pinhole-corrected vision < or =6/18 in > or =1 eye due to ophthalmologist-diagnosed cataract. Subjects were administered a previously validated questionnaire on barriers to surgery in four areas: knowledge (K), perceptions of quality (Q), transportation (T), and cost (C). RESULTS: Screening group (SG; n = 120) and clinic group (CG; n = 120) participants did not differ from eligible, examined screening and clinic patients respectively in age, gender, or vision. SG participants were significantly more likely to be female (P = 0.002) and had a smaller housing area and less education (P < 0.001 for both) than those in the CG. Those in the CG were more likely to be blind (habitual VA < or = 6/60) in the better-seeing eye (P = 0.05) and more willing to undergo and pay for cataract surgery (P < 0.001 for both) than SG. In logistic regression models, SG subjects had significantly lower quality scores (P < 0.001) and better habitual vision (P = 0.02) than did CG participants, and SG subjects who agreed to cataract surgery (78.3%) had significantly higher knowledge scores (P < 0.001) than those who refused. DISCUSSION: Screening outreach has the potential to ameliorate disparities in access to cataract surgery in rural China, as it appears more likely to detect patients with cataract with gender-related, economic, educational, and attitudinal barriers to surgery. However, education may be needed to convince screening subjects to undergo surgery.

Presbyopia and near-vision impairment in rural northern China.

PURPOSE: Presbyopia limits activities of daily living, but population-based data from rural China are scarce. METHODS: A population-based, cross-sectional study was conducted in 2009 among all persons aged 40+ years in a rural area near Shenyang, China. Distance and near VA were measured using logMAR E charts. Individuals with pinhole-corrected distance vision ≥20/63 underwent detailed eye examination and near refraction. RESULTS: A total of 1008 (91.5%) respondents were examined (mean age, 58.4 ± 10.7 years for men, 56.8 ± 9.89 years for women). Women and older subjects were more likely to participate. The prevalence of functional presbyopia (near vision <20/50 [N8] improved by ≥1 line with correction) was 67.3% (95% confidence interval [CI], 64.30%-70.09%), increasing from 27.6% at 40 to 49 years of age to 81.8% at 60 to 69 years. Multivariate analysis showed that older age (P < 0.001), but not gender or education, was significantly associated with a higher risk of presbyopia. Self-reported presbyopic spectacle correction coverage was 51.5%. In multivariate logistic regression models, worse presenting near vision (P = 0.013) and higher required spherical equivalent power (P < 0.001) were associated with having correction, while age, gender, education, and distance vision were unassociated. Major barriers reported by persons without near correction included poor quality of available glasses (33.1%) and lack of awareness of the condition and its treatment (28.8%). CONCLUSIONS: Presbyopia is highly prevalent in rural China, and nearly half of affected persons have no access to correction. Interventions should focus on education and improvement in the quality of refractive services.

Self correction of refractive error among young people in rural China: results of cross sectional investigation.

OBJECTIVE: To compare outcomes between adjustable spectacles and conventional methods for refraction in young people. DESIGN: Cross sectional study. SETTING: Rural southern China. PARTICIPANTS: 648 young people aged 12-18 (mean 14.9 (SD 0.98)), with uncorrected visual acuity ≤ 6/12 in either eye. INTERVENTIONS: All participants underwent self refraction without cycloplegia (paralysis of near focusing ability with topical eye drops), automated refraction without cycloplegia, and subjective refraction by an ophthalmologist with cycloplegia. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Uncorrected and corrected vision, improvement of vision (lines on a chart), and refractive error. RESULTS: Among the participants, 59% (384) were girls, 44% (288) wore spectacles, and 61% (393/648) had 2.00 dioptres or more of myopia in the right eye. All completed self refraction. The proportion with visual acuity ≥ 6/7.5 in the better eye was 5.2% (95% confidence interval 3.6% to 6.9%) for uncorrected vision, 30.2% (25.7% to 34.8%) for currently worn spectacles, 96.9% (95.5% to 98.3%) for self refraction, 98.4% (97.4% to 99.5%) for automated refraction, and 99.1% (98.3% to 99.9%) for subjective refraction (P = 0.033 for self refraction v automated refraction, P = 0.001 for self refraction v subjective refraction). Improvements over uncorrected vision in the better eye with self refraction and subjective refraction were within one line on the eye chart in 98% of participants. In logistic regression models, failure to achieve maximum recorded visual acuity of 6/7.5 in right eyes with self refraction was associated with greater absolute value of myopia/hyperopia (P<0.001), greater astigmatism (P = 0.001), and not having previously worn spectacles (P = 0.002), but not age or sex. Significant inaccuracies in power (≥ 1.00 dioptre) were less common in right eyes with self refraction than with automated refraction (5% v 11%, P<0.001). CONCLUSIONS: Though visual acuity was slightly worse with self refraction than automated or subjective refraction, acuity was excellent in nearly all these young people with inadequately corrected refractive error at baseline. Inaccurate power was less common with self refraction than automated refraction. Self refraction could decrease the requirement for scarce trained personnel, expensive devices, and cycloplegia in children's vision programmes in rural China.

Ophthalmology. 2011 Dec;118(12):2343-50. doi: 10.1016/j.ophtha.2011.06.016. Epub 2011 Sep 1. Randomized, controlled trial of an educational intervention to promote spectacle use in rural China: the see well to learn well study.

OBJECTIVE: To test an educational intervention promoting the purchase of spectacles among Chinese children. DESIGN: Randomized, controlled trial. PARTICIPANTS: Children in years 1 and 2 of all 20 junior and senior high schools (ages 12-17 years) in 3 rural townships in Guangdong, China. METHODS: Children underwent visual acuity (VA) testing, and parents of participants with presenting VA worse than 6/12 in either eye improving by more than 2 lines with cycloplegic refraction were recommended to purchase glasses. Children at 10 randomly selected schools received a lecture, video, and classroom demonstration promoting spectacle purchase. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Self-reported purchase of spectacles (primary outcome) and observed wear or possession of newly purchased glasses (secondary outcome) at follow-up examinations (mean, 219 ± 87 days after the baseline visit). RESULTS: Among 15 404 eligible children, examinations were completed for 6379 (74.6%) at intervention schools and 5044 (73.6%) at control schools. Spectacles were recommended for 2236 (35.1%) children at intervention schools and for 2212 (43.9%) at control schools. Of these, 417 (25.7%) intervention schools children and 537 (34.0%, P = 0.45) control schools children reported buying glasses. Predictors of purchase in regression models included female gender (P = 0.02), worse uncorrected VA (P < 0.001), and higher absolute value of refractive error (P = 0.001). Neither the rate of self-reported purchase of glasses or observed wear or possession of newly purchased glasses differed between control schools and intervention schools in mixed-effect logistic regression models. Among children not purchasing glasses, 21.7% had better-eye VA of worse than 6/18. CONCLUSIONS: An intervention based on extensive pilot testing and focus groups in the area failed to promote spectacle purchase or wear. The high burden of remaining uncorrected poor vision underscores the need to develop better interventions. FINANCIAL DISCLOSURE(S): The author(s) have no proprietary or commercial interest in any materials discussed in this article.

Compliance with follow-up after cataract surgery in rural China.

PURPOSE:

To evaluate reasons for non-compliance with post-cataract surgical follow-up in rural China, and assess the impact of incentives on improving compliance.

METHODS:

Patients having undergone cataract surgery more than 3 months previously at cataract surgery training hospitals in Guangdong were invited by telephone and advertisements to a hospital-based study examination, with compensation for travel costs (US$7). Information on prior post-surgical follow up was collected by questionnaire at the hospital or by telephone. Logistic regression was used to assess predictors of post-operative attendance with or without compensation.

RESULTS:

Among 518 eligible patients, 426 (82.2%) underwent interviews and 342 (66.0%) attended the compensated study examination. Ninety nine participants (23.2%) reported previously returning for uncompensated follow-up ≥ 3 months post-operatively, and 225 (52.8%) had returned for any prior post-operative examination. Uncompensated follow-up at ≥ 3 months was associated with higher income (P = 0.037), and recalling instruction by a doctor to follow-up (P = 0.001), while age, gender, travel cost, and post-operative satisfaction and vision were not associated. Younger (P = 0.002) patients and those reporting being instructed to follow up (P = 0.008) were more likely to return for the compensated research examination. Among all interviewed subjects, only 170 (39.9%) reported knowing they were to return to hospital.

CONCLUSIONS:

Modest compensation, advertisements and telephone contact can increase medium-term follow-up rates after cataract surgery by three-fold. Better communication of specific targets for follow-up may improve follow-up compliance.

Potentially inappropriate prescribing in two populations with differing socio-economic profiles: a cross-sectional database study using the PROMPT criteria

PURPOSE: The purpose of this study is to establish the prevalence of potentially inappropriate prescribing (PIP) in middle-aged adults (45-64 years) in two populations with differing socio-economic profiles, and to investigate factors associated with PIP, using the PROMPT (PRescribing Optimally in Middle-aged People's Treatments) criteria.METHODS: A retrospective cross-sectional study was conducted using 2012 data from the Enhanced Prescribing Database (EPD), covering the full population in Northern Ireland and the Health Services Executive Primary Care Reimbursement Service (HSE-PCRS) database, covering the most socio-economically deprived third of the population in this age group in the Republic of Ireland. The prevalence for each PROMPT criterion and overall prevalence of PIP were calculated. Logistic regression was used to investigate the association between PIP and gender, age group and polypharmacy.RESULTS: This study included 441,925 patients from the EPD and 309,748 patients from the HSE-PCRS database. Polypharmacy was common in both datasets (46.7 % in the HSE-PCRS and 20.3 % in the EPD). The prevalence of PIP was 42.9 % (95%CI 42.7, 43.1) in the HSE-PCRS and 21.1 % (95%CI 21.0, 21.2) in the EPD. Age group, female gender and polypharmacy were significantly associated with PIP in both populations (p < 0.05) and polypharmacy had the strongest association.CONCLUSIONS: PIP is common amongst middle-aged people with the risk of PIP increasing with polypharmacy. Differences in the prevalence of polypharmacy and PIP between the two populations may relate to heterogeneity in healthcare services and different socio-economic profiles, with higher rates of multimorbidity and associated polypharmacy in more deprived groups.

Residential segregation, dividing walls and mental health: A population-based record linkage study

Background
Neighbourhood segregation has been described as a fundamental determinant of physical health, but literature on its effect on mental health is less clear. Whilst most previous research has relied on conceptualized measures of segregation, Northern Ireland is unique as it contains physical manifestations of segregation in the form of segregation barriers (or “peacelines”) which can be used to accurately identify residential segregation.
Methods
We used population-wide health record data on over 1.3 million individuals, to analyse the effect of residential segregation, measured by both the formal Dissimilarity Index and by proximity to a segregation barrier, on the likelihood of poor mental health.
Results
Using multi-level logistic regression models we found residential segregation measured by the Dissimilarity Index poses no additional risk to the likelihood of poor mental health after adjustment for area-level deprivation. However, residence in an area segregated by a “peaceline” increases the likelihood of antidepressant medication by 19% (OR=1.19, 95% CI: 1.14, 1.23) and anxiolytic medication by 39% (OR=1.39, 95% CI: 1.32, 1.48), even after adjustment for gender, age, conurbation, deprivation and crime.
Conclusions
Living in an area segregated by a ‘peaceline’ is detrimental to mental health suggesting segregated areas characterised by a heightened sense of ‘other’ pose a greater risk to mental health. The difference in results based on segregation measure highlights the importance of choice of measure when studying segregation.

Assessing elements of a family approach to reduce adolescent drinking frequency: parent-adolescent relationship, knowledge management, and keeping secrets

AIMS: To estimate 1) the associations between parent-adolescent relationship, parental knowledge and subsequent adolescent drinking frequency and 2) the influence of alcohol use on parental knowledge.

DESIGN: Path analysis of school based cohort study with annual surveys SETTING: Post primary schools from urban and intermediate/rural areas in Northern Ireland PARTICIPANTS: 4,937 post primary school students aged around 11 years in 2000 followed until around age 16 in 2005.

MEASUREMENTS: Pupil reported measures of: frequency of alcohol use; parental-child relationship quality; sub-dimensions of parental monitoring: parental control, parental solicitation, child disclosure and child secrecy.

FINDINGS: Higher levels of parental control (Ordinal logistic OR 0.86 95% CI 0.78, 0.95) and lower levels of child secrecy (OR 0.83 95% CI 0.75 0.92) were associated with less frequent alcohol use subsequently. Parental solicitation and parent-child relationship quality were not associated with drinking frequency. Weekly alcohol drinking was associated with higher subsequent secrecy (Beta -0.42 95% CI -0.53, -0.32) and lower parental control (Beta -0.15 95% CI -0.26, -0.04). Secrecy was more strongly predictive of alcohol use at younger compared with older ages (P=0.02), and alcohol use was less strongly associated with parental control among families with poorer relationships (P=0.04).

CONCLUSIONS: Adolescent alcohol use appears to increase as parental control decreases and child secrecy increases. Greater parental control is associated with less frequent adolescent drinking subsequently, while parent-child attachment and parental solicitation have little influence on alcohol use. 

Reduced risk of pancreatic cancer associated with asthma and nasal allergies

OBJECTIVE: Studies indicate an inverse association between ductal adenocarcinoma of the pancreas (PDAC) and nasal allergies. However, controversial findings are reported for the association with asthma. Understanding PDAC risk factors will help us to implement appropriate strategies to prevent, treat and diagnose this cancer. This study assessed and characterised the association between PDAC and asthma and corroborated existing reports regarding the association between allergies and PDAC risk.

DESIGN: Information about asthma and allergies was collated from 1297 PDAC cases and 1024 controls included in the PanGenEU case-control study. Associations between PDAC and atopic diseases were studied using multilevel logistic regression analysis. Meta-analyses of association studies on these diseases and PDAC risk were performed applying random-effects model.

RESULTS: Asthma was associated with lower risk of PDAC (OR 0.64, 95% CI 0.47 to 0.88), particularly long-standing asthma (>=17 years, OR 0.39, 95% CI 0.24 to 0.65). Meta-analysis of 10 case-control studies sustained our results (metaOR 0.73, 95% CI 0.59 to 0.89). Nasal allergies and related symptoms were associated with lower risk of PDAC (OR 0.66, 95% CI 0.52 to 0.83 and OR 0.59, 95% CI 0.46 to 0.77, respectively). These results were supported by a meta-analysis of nasal allergy studies (metaOR 0.6, 95% CI 0.5 to 0.72). Skin allergies were not associated with PDAC risk.

CONCLUSIONS: This study shows a consistent inverse association between PDAC and asthma and nasal allergies, supporting the notion that atopic diseases are associated with reduced cancer risk. These results point to the involvement of immune and/or inflammatory factors that may either foster or restrain pancreas carcinogenesis warranting further research to understand the molecular mechanisms driving this association.

Potentially inappropriate prescribing among people with dementia in primary care: a retrospective cross-sectional study using the Enhanced Prescribing Database

Background: Little is known about prescribing appropriateness for community-dwelling people with dementia (PWD).
Objective To estimate potentially inappropriate prescribing (PIP) prevalence among PWD in primary care in Northern Ireland, and to investigate associations between PIP and polypharmacy, age and gender.

Methods: A retrospective cross-sectional study was conducted, using data from the Enhanced Prescribing Database. Patients were eligible if a medicine indicated for dementia management was dispensed to them during 01/01/2013 – 31/12/2013. Polypharmacy was indicated by use of ≥4 repeat medications from different drug groups. A subset of the Screening Tool of Older Persons Potentially Inappropriate Prescriptions (STOPP) criteria, comprising 36 indicators, was applied to the dataset. Overall prevalence of PIP and the prevalence per each STOPP criterion was calculated as a proportion of all eligible persons in the dataset. Logistic regression was used to investigate associations between PIP, polypharmacy, age and gender.

Results: The study population comprised 6826 patients. Polypharmacy was observed in 81.5% (n=5564) of patients. PIP prevalence during the study period was 64.4% (95% CI 63.2 – 65.5; n=4393). The most common instance of PIP was the use of anticholinergic/antimuscarinic medications (n=1718; 25.2%; 95% CI 24.2 – 26.2). In multivariable analyses, both polypharmacy and gender (being female) were associated with PIP, with odds ratios of 7.6 (95% CI 6.6 – 8.7) and 1.3 (95% CI 1.2 – 1.4) respectively. No association was observed between PIP and age, after adjustments for gender and polypharmacy.

Conclusion: This study identified a high prevalence of PIP in community-dwelling PWD. Future interventions may need to focus on certain therapeutic categories and polypharmacy.