Beers criteria: An up-to-date tool for detecting inappropriate prescription in elderly

Abstract

Potentially inappropriate medications (PIM) are drugs that can cause significant unnecessary harm to patients. Prescribing PIM can cause significant healthcare problems, especially if there is a safer, similar, or even more effective alternative for the treatment. They are the cause of significant health issues that lead to increased treatment costs and reduced life quality. The main problem when it comes to treating geriatric population is a lack of specific guidelines for the treatment. This is mainly because clinical trials which are the main pillars of clinical guidelines are usually aimed at people aged 18 to 65, leaving the geriatric population aside. For this reason, as well as to reduce the prescription of PIM in the geriatric population many guidelines have been created, among which the AGS Beers criteria were the first and have remained the leading and most comprehensive tool for this purpose. Since 1991, the Beers criteria have gone through several updates and changes in format, and in 2012 they came under control of the American Geriatric Society. The constant updates and work on these guidelines saved them the top position, compared to other guidelines in this field. Taking all this into consideration, it is imperative for every clinician who works with geriatric patients to be familiar with these guidelines and to utilize them properly as explained.