Eur Heart J Cardiovasc Pharmacother. 2019 Mar 23. pii: pvz014. [Epub ahead of print]
Woudstra OI,
Kuijpers JM,
Meijboom FJ,
Post MC,
Jongbloed MRM,
Duijnhouwer AL,
van Dijk APJ,
van Melle JP,
Konings TC,
Zwinderman AH,
Mulder BJM,
Bouma BJ.
AIMS: To assess medication use in adult congenital heart disease(ACHD) patients compared to the age- and sex-matched general population, identify patterns of pharmacotherapy, and analyze associations between pharmacotherapy and adverse outcomes in ACHD.METHODS AND RESULTS: Data of 14,138 ACHD patients from the CONCOR-registry(35[24-48]years, 49% male) and age- and sex-matched referents(1:10-ratio) were extracted from the Dutch Dispensed Drug Register for the years 2006-2014. ACHD patients had more cardiovascular and non-cardiovascular drugs than referents(median 3 vs 1, p < 0.001). Polypharmacy, defined as ≥ 5 dispensed drug types yearly, was present in 30% of ACHD and 15% of referents(OR = 2.47[95%CI 2.39-2.54]). Polypharmacy was independently associated with female sex(OR = 1.92[95%CI 1.88-1.96]), older age(for men:OR=2.3/10years[95%CI 2.2-2.4], for women:OR=1.6/10years[95%CI 1.5-1.6];Pinteraction<0.001), and ACHD severity(mild:OR=2.51[95%CI 2.40-2.61], moderate:OR=3.22[95%CI 3.06-3.40], severe:OR=4.87[95%CI 4.41-5.38]). Cluster analysis identified three subgroups with distinct medication patterns; a "low medication use" group(8-year cumulative survival:98%), and a "cardiovascular" and "comorbidity" group with lower survival(92% and 95%, respectively). Cox regression revealed a strong association between polypharmacy and mortality(HR = 3.94[95%CI 3.22-4.81]), corrected for age, sex and defect severity. Polypharmacy also increased the risk of hospitalization for adverse drug events(HR = 4.58[95%CI 2.04-10.29]).
CONCLUSION: Both cardiovascular and non-cardiovascular medication use is high in ACHD with twice as much polypharmacy compared to the matched general population. Patients with polypharmacy had a 4-fold increased risk of mortality and adverse drug events. Recognition of distinct medication patterns can help identify patients at highest risk. Drug regimens need repeating evaluation to assess the appropriateness of all prescriptions. More high-quality studies are needed to improve ACHD care with more evidence-based pharmacotherapy.
Keywords: Adult congenital heart disease; adverse drug events; cluster analysis; dispensed drugs; multiple medications; phenomapping; polypharmacy