Evidence map›Paper›PMID 42472621›Full record

Trial reportAge and ageing2026

Deprescribing in older patients with hyperpolypharmacy: a cluster-randomised trial in primary care.

Gert Baas, Mette Heringa, Sanne Verdoorn, Henk-Frans Kwint, Eman Badawy, Jacobijn Gussekloo, Jako Burgers, Petra Denig, Marcel L Bouvy

Abstract readRandomized Controlled TrialMulticenter Study
In one paragraph

Trial report in Age and ageing, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
0citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

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.

2 · The registry

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.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

0 citing papers in PubMed.

No citing paper in PubMed yet.

4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

9 authors.

Gert BaasSIR Institute for Pharmacy Practice and Policy, Leiden, ZH, The Netherlands.ORCID 0000-0002-3159-509X
Mette HeringaSIR Institute for Pharmacy Practice and Policy, Leiden, ZH, The Netherlands.
Sanne VerdoornSIR Institute for Pharmacy Practice and Policy, Leiden, ZH, The Netherlands.
Henk-Frans KwintSIR Institute for Pharmacy Practice and Policy, Leiden, ZH, The Netherlands.
Eman BadawySIR Institute for Pharmacy Practice and Policy, Leiden, ZH, The Netherlands.
Jacobijn GusseklooPublic Health and Primary Care, Leiden University Medical Center, Leiden, The Netherlands.ORCID 0000-0001-7186-8278
Jako BurgersDepartment of Family Medicine, Maastricht University, Maastricht, LI, The Netherlands.
Petra DenigClinical Pharmacy & Pharmacology, University of Groningen, University Medical Center Groningen, PO Box 30001 EB71, Groningen 9700RB, The Netherlands.
Marcel L BouvyDepartment of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Utrecht University, Utrecht 125, The Netherlands.ORCID 0000-0002-4596-0684

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundPolypharmacy increases the risk of adverse drug events and potentially preventable hospital admissions. Deprescribing may reduce medication-related harm, and a clinical medication review (CMR) provides an opportunity to support this.

objectiveTo investigate the effect of a deprescribing-focused CMR by trained pharmacists on the number of reduced and stopped medications among patients aged ≥75 years with hyperpolypharmacy using multidose-drug-dispensing (MDD)-systems.

methodsIn this cluster-randomised controlled trial, pharmacists were trained to perform a deprescribing-focused CMR, while control pharmacies provided usual care. Eligible patients were aged ≥75 years, had hyperpolypharmacy and used MDD. Dispensing data were used to determine the number of reduced and stopped medications per patient after 6 months (primary outcome). Secondary outcomes were: total number of medications, health problems and quality-of-life (EQ-5D-5L, EQ-VAS). A generalised linear mixed model was used for the primary outcome.

resultsA total of 318 patients from 58 pharmacies were enrolled (155 intervention, 163 control). At 6 months, patients in the intervention group had significantly more medications deprescribed than those in the control group (mean 2.5 vs. 1.7 per patient; mean difference 0.79, 95% CI 0.29-1.28; P = .002). There was no significant between-group difference in the total number of medications at 6 months (intervention -0.30 vs. control +0.12; P = .108). No significant differences were observed in health problems or quality-of-life.

conclusionDeprescribing-focused CMRs by trained pharmacists successfully increased reduction and stopping of medications in older patients with hyperpolypharmacy using MDD-systems, while no changes in health problems or health-related quality of life could be observed over 6 months.

Indexed as

DeprescriptionsDrug-Related Side Effects and Adverse ReactionsMedication ReviewPharmacistsPolypharmacyPrimary Health CareAgedAged, 80 and overAge FactorsFemaleHumansInappropriate PrescribingMaleQuality of LifeTime Factorsdeprescribing(hyper)polypharmacymedication reviewolder peoplerandomised controlled trial

Identifiers

PMID42472621
PMCPMC13381036

What Socratic holds

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Registered trials

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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 Socratic graph.