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Antipsychotic prescribing patterns in care homes and relationship with dementia
- Authors:
- ALLDRED David P., et al
- Journal article citation:
- Psychiatric Bulletin, 31(9), September 2007, pp.329-332.
- Publisher:
- Royal College of Psychiatrists
The aim was to determine the prescribing patterns for antipsychotics in care homes for the elderly, a cross-sectional study was carried out using data from the intervention group of a randomised controlled trial of medication review in care homes. Of 331 residents studied, 67 (20%) were prescribed an antipsychotic (70% atypical); 57 of these (85%) did not have a diagnosis of a psychotic disorder. The antipsychotic prescribing rate was 32% (46 out of 146) for those with dementia and 10% (17 out of 174) for those without dementia. A quarter (82 out of 331) had received a medication review by the general practitioner in the preceding 12 months. One-fifth of residents were prescribed an antipsychotic with little evidence of review. Systems should ensure residents’ treatment is reviewed regularly.