Polypharmacy Risk Score Calculator
Drug interaction risk from medication count, high-risk classes, renal function, and anticholinergic burden.
Medical Disclaimer
This calculator is for informational and educational purposes only. It is not a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always consult a qualified healthcare provider before making decisions about your health. Never disregard professional medical advice or delay seeking it because of results from this tool.
Inputs
Results
Interaction risk score
27.4
How to Use This Calculator
- Enter the total Number of Medications the patient takes daily.
- Enter the number of medications with high fall risk, anticholinergic burden, and renal dose concerns.
- Review the Polypharmacy Risk Score and overall medication burden classification.
- Check flagged medication categories to prioritize a comprehensive medication review.
- Use the score to initiate deprescribing discussions and pharmacist consultation.
How the result changes with Total medications
| Total medications | Interaction risk score |
|---|---|
| 3 | 8.8 |
| 11 | 100 |
| 20 | 100 |
| 27 | 100 |
What each input means
- Total medications
- Total number of scheduled and PRN medications the patient takes.
- High-risk medications
- Number of high-risk drugs (anticoagulants, opioids, insulin, digoxin, lithium, etc.).
- Patient age
- Patient age in years. Risk increases sharply after age 75 and 85.
- eGFR
- Estimated glomerular filtration rate. Lower eGFR means reduced drug clearance.
- Anticholinergic burden score
- Sum of anticholinergic burden from all medications (0-10 scale).
- PRN medications
- Number of as-needed (PRN) medications — candidates for deprescribing review.
What each result means
- Interaction risk score
- Combined drug interaction risk (0-100). Higher = greater probability of adverse interactions.
- Polypharmacy level
- 1 = No polypharmacy (<5 meds), 2 = Polypharmacy (5-9), 3 = Hyperpolypharmacy (10+).
- Estimated potential interactions
- Approximate number of clinically significant drug-drug interactions expected.
- ADE risk category (1-5)
- Adverse drug event risk: 1 = very low, 5 = very high.
- Fall risk from medications
- Medication-related fall risk score (0-100).
- Deprescribing opportunity
- Score indicating potential benefit from medication review and deprescribing (0-100).
How this is calculated
Worked example, using the default values
- Identify Input Parameters4 parametersTotal medications = 5, High-risk medications = 1, Patient age = 75, eGFR = 60 = 6 input(s) provided
- Calculate Interaction risk scoreInteraction risk score27.4 = 27.4
- Calculate Polypharmacy level2 = 2
- Calculate Estimated potential interactionsEstimated potential interactions0.3 = 0.3
Engine last updated . Checked against 3 independently-derived tests — how we verify calculators.
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