Antipsychotic prescribing patterns in care homes and relationship with dementia

Abstract

Aims and method: 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. Results: 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. Clinical implications: One-fifth of residents were prescribed an antipsychotic with little evidence of review. Systems should ensure residents' treatment is reviewed regularly.