polypharmacy
noun
poly·phar·ma·cy
| \ ˌpä-li-ˈfär-mə-sē
\
\
Definition of polypharmacy
: the practice of administering many different medicines especially concurrently for the treatment of a single disease
also
: the concurrent use of multiple medications by a patient to treat usually coexisting conditions and which may result in adverse drug interactions
Examples of polypharmacy in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
The work is part of a provocative and growing body of research that documents how polypharmacy -- the use of multiple prescription drugs at the same time -- has risen in the U.S. — Carolyn Y. Johnson, chicagotribune.com, "More than a third of American adults take prescription drugs that may increase risk of depression, study says," 12 June 2018 Studies have linked polypharmacy to unnecessary death. — Sandra G. Boodman | Kaiser Health News, Washington Post, "An Overlooked Epidemic: Older Americans Taking Too Many Unneeded Drugs," 12 Dec. 2017 Studies have linked polypharmacy to unnecessary death. — Sandra G. Boodman, chicagotribune.com, "America's other big drug problem: Older people take too many pills," 12 Dec. 2017 Studies have linked polypharmacy to unnecessary death. — Sandra G. Boodman | Kaiser Health News, Washington Post, "An Overlooked Epidemic: Older Americans Taking Too Many Unneeded Drugs," 12 Dec. 2017 Studies have linked polypharmacy to unnecessary death. — Sandra G. Boodman, chicagotribune.com, "America's other big drug problem: Older people take too many pills," 12 Dec. 2017 Studies have linked polypharmacy to unnecessary death. — Sandra G. Boodman | Kaiser Health News, Washington Post, "An Overlooked Epidemic: Older Americans Taking Too Many Unneeded Drugs," 12 Dec. 2017 Studies have linked polypharmacy to unnecessary death. — Sandra G. Boodman, chicagotribune.com, "America's other big drug problem: Older people take too many pills," 12 Dec. 2017 Studies have linked polypharmacy to unnecessary death. — Sandra G. Boodman, miamiherald, "They’re taking pills to wake up, to sleep, to lower blood pressure. The other drug issue.," 11 Dec. 2017These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'polypharmacy.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
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More Definitions for polypharmacy
polypharmacy
noun
poly·phar·ma·cy
| \ -ˈfär-mə-sē
\
\
plural polypharmacies
Medical Definition of polypharmacy
: the practice of administering many different medicines especially concurrently for the treatment of the same disease
also
: the concurrent use of multiple medications by a patient to treat usually coexisting conditions and which may result in adverse drug interactions