Medication discontinuation

Medication discontinuation is the ceasing of a medication treatment for a patient by either the clinician or the patient themself.^[1]^[2] When initiated by the clinician, it is known as deprescribing.^[3] Medication discontinuation is an important medical practice that may be motivated by a number of reasons:^[4]^[3]

Reducing polypharmacy
Reducing health expenditure
Improving quality of life by ceasing medications with potential adverse effects or where the indication for a medical treatment may have changed
Reflect changes in evidence that support a treatment
Reflecting changes in treatment goals, such as a move to end-of-life care.^[5]

Unlike the prescribing of medications, appropriate discontinuation has not attracted nearly as much attention or interest.^[6]

^ Raebel MA, Schmittdiel J, Karter AJ, Konieczny JL, Steiner JF (August 2013). "Standardizing terminology and definitions of medication adherence and persistence in research employing electronic databases". Medical Care. 51 (8 Suppl 3): S11-21. doi:10.1097/MLR.0b013e31829b1d2a. PMC 3727405. PMID 23774515.
^ Abdullah-Koolmees H, Gardarsdottir H, Yazir D, Stoker LJ, Vuyk J, Egberts TC, Heerdink ER (October 2015). "Medication Discontinuation in Patients After Discharge From a Psychiatric Hospital". The Annals of Pharmacotherapy. 49 (10): 1085–95. doi:10.1177/1060028015593763. hdl:1874/329744. PMID 26160969. S2CID 19123557.
^ ^a ^b Linsky A, Meterko M, Stolzmann K, Simon SR (June 2017). "Supporting medication discontinuation: provider preferences for interventions to facilitate deprescribing". BMC Health Services Research. 17 (1): 447. doi:10.1186/s12913-017-2391-0. PMC 5490086. PMID 28659157.
^ Nixon M, Kousgaard MB (July 2016). "Organising medication discontinuation: a qualitative study exploring the views of general practitioners toward discontinuing statins". BMC Health Services Research. 16 (1): 226. doi:10.1186/s12913-016-1495-2. PMC 4936268. PMID 27388025.
^ Abel J (July 2013). "Withdrawing life-extending drugs at the end of life". Prescriber. 24 (13–16): 17–20. doi:10.1002/psb.1083.
^ Bain KT, Holmes HM, Beers MH, Maio V, Handler SM, Pauker SG (October 2008). "Discontinuing medications: a novel approach for revising the prescribing stage of the medication-use process". Journal of the American Geriatrics Society. 56 (10): 1946–52. doi:10.1111/j.1532-5415.2008.01916.x. PMC 3119470. PMID 18771457.

[Raebel_2013-1] Raebel MA, Schmittdiel J, Karter AJ, Konieczny JL, Steiner JF (August 2013). "Standardizing terminology and definitions of medication adherence and persistence in research employing electronic databases". Medical Care. 51 (8 Suppl 3): S11-21. doi:10.1097/MLR.0b013e31829b1d2a. PMC 3727405. PMID 23774515.

[Abdullah-Koolmees_2015-2] Abdullah-Koolmees H, Gardarsdottir H, Yazir D, Stoker LJ, Vuyk J, Egberts TC, Heerdink ER (October 2015). "Medication Discontinuation in Patients After Discharge From a Psychiatric Hospital". The Annals of Pharmacotherapy. 49 (10): 1085–95. doi:10.1177/1060028015593763. hdl:1874/329744. PMID 26160969. S2CID 19123557.

[LINSKY2017-3] Linsky A, Meterko M, Stolzmann K, Simon SR (June 2017). "Supporting medication discontinuation: provider preferences for interventions to facilitate deprescribing". BMC Health Services Research. 17 (1): 447. doi:10.1186/s12913-017-2391-0. PMC 5490086. PMID 28659157.

[4] Nixon M, Kousgaard MB (July 2016). "Organising medication discontinuation: a qualitative study exploring the views of general practitioners toward discontinuing statins". BMC Health Services Research. 16 (1): 226. doi:10.1186/s12913-016-1495-2. PMC 4936268. PMID 27388025.

[ABEL2013-5] Abel J (July 2013). "Withdrawing life-extending drugs at the end of life". Prescriber. 24 (13–16): 17–20. doi:10.1002/psb.1083.

[6] Bain KT, Holmes HM, Beers MH, Maio V, Handler SM, Pauker SG (October 2008). "Discontinuing medications: a novel approach for revising the prescribing stage of the medication-use process". Journal of the American Geriatrics Society. 56 (10): 1946–52. doi:10.1111/j.1532-5415.2008.01916.x. PMC 3119470. PMID 18771457.

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