Pharmacist-Led Intervention Was Successful for Deprescribing Inappropriate Medications

Despite the high frequency of inappropriate prescribing, physician-based approaches to deprescribing face several barriers. Canadian researchers evaluated a pharmacist-led intervention in older users of sedative-hypnotics, first-generation antihistamines, glyburide, or nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs). Of 2815 eligible patients, about 2200 declined to participate, ultimately leaving 489 enrollees (mean age, 75; mean number of medications, 9) who were randomized to usual care or a targeted educational intervention (pharmacist-delivered materials about stopping a medication, alternative treatment options, and tapering protocols for sedative-hypnotic users). Participants' physicians received companion materials with pharmaceutical…