Doctors should cut back on some medicines in seniors, studies suggest

http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2015-10/uomh-tmt102215.php

Public Release: 26-Oct-2015
Too much, too late: Doctors should cut back on some medicines in seniors, studies suggest
Overtreatment for blood pressure & blood sugar can be dangerous for some
University of Michigan Health System

Anyone who takes medicine to get their blood sugar or blood pressure down - or both - knows their doctor prescribed it to help them.

But what if stopping, or at least cutting back on, such drugs could help even more?

In some older people, that may be the safer route. But two new studies published in JAMA Internal Medicine suggest doctors and patients should work together to backpedal such treatment more often.

In people in their 70s and older, very low blood pressures and sugar levels can actually raise the risk of dizzy spells, confusion, falls and even death. The consequences can be dangerous.

In recent years, experts have started to suggest that doctors ease up on how aggressively they treat such patients for high blood pressure or diabetes -- especially if they have other conditions that limit their life expectancy.

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