Determinants of polypharmacy among ambulatory cardiovascular disease patients in Iluababora and Buno Bedele Zones, Ethiopia: prospective observational study.

BACKGROUND: Cardiovascular disease is still the largest cause of disease in the world. Polypharmacy among cardiovascular disease patients has increased as the population ages and multimorbidity rates grow. This has a negative impact on one’s health and may result in drug interactions. Despite, the potential harm that polypharmacy might bring, little has been done to investigate the prevalence of polypharmacy and its determinants among cardiovascular disease patients, particularly in Ethiopia. OBJECTIVE: To determine magnitude of polypharmacy and its determinants among ambulatory cardiovascular disease patients at public hospitals in Iluababora and Buno Bedele Zones, Southwest Oromia, Ethiopia. METHOD AND PARTICIPANTS: A prospective observational study was conducted from November 1, 2022 to August 30, 2023, at public hospitals in Iluababora and Buno Bedelle Zones. Sample size was 1169 cardiovascular disease patients and consecutive sampling technique was used for recruiting these study participants. The Data was analyzed using statistical software package version 25.0. Bivariable and multivariable logistic regressions were used to identify the determinants of polypharmacy among cardiovascular disease patients and statistical significance was considered at a p-value < 0.05. RESULTS: The prevalence of polypharmacy was 31.8% in cardiovascular patients while cardiovascular disease specific polypharmacy was 9.6%. The mean age was 60.52 years ± 14.11.The determinants of polypharmacy among Cardiovascular disease were those who had a history of chewing khat [AOR = 4.08, 95%CI= (1.67–9.95)], age greater than 64 years old [AOR = 4.74, 95%CI= (2.19–10.27)] and those who had a history of cigarette smoking [AOR = 2.86, 95%CI= (1.33–6.15)]. CONCLUSION: Polypharmacy was common among ambulatory cardiovascular disease patients in the study area. Chewing khat, being above the age of 64years, and smoking cigarettes were associated factors for polypharmacy among cardiovascular disease patients. Hence, to overcome these problems, clinical pharmacists, physicians, and other health professionals have to work in collaboration.