Características da utilização de medicamentos pelos idosos no município de Cuité - PB.

Abstract

The aged constitute a portion of the population that is increasing around the world. In Brazil, the population aging has occurred quickly and accented, phenomenon that propose a rise of chronic diseases and disabilitation, resulting in a change of paradigm in public health. In current studies it was proposed to describe the profile of drug used by aged people in the city of Cuité-PB, considering the epidemiological profile, the morbidities are more prevalent and the therapy class used more by them. It concerns of an exploratory research with a quantitative approach, performed with 240 aged residents in the city of Cuité-PB, by the application of a survey containing objectives questions performed in the aged residents. We noticed that among the aged residence the preponderance of female sex (67,1%), illiterate (36,2%) and with low income (97,0%), using up to three drugs (88,0%), having as pharmacological classes used more the antihypertensive (34,0%). The prevalence of the use of drugs was comparable with other studies. Thus, it is necessary the systematic monitoring of the aged residents that use multiples drugs, emphasizing the educational actions to change their lifestyle, counting with a multiprofessional team.