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Psychotropic Drug Use in Relation to Psychiatric Symptoms in Community‐Living Persons With Alzheimer's Disease
Author(s) -
Semla Todd P.,
Cohen Donna,
Freels Sally,
Paveza Gregory J.,
Ashford J. Wesson,
Gorelick Philip,
Luchins Daniel,
Eisdorfer Carl
Publication year - 1995
Publication title -
pharmacotherapy: the journal of human pharmacology and drug therapy
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.227
H-Index - 109
eISSN - 1875-9114
pISSN - 0277-0008
DOI - 10.1002/j.1875-9114.1995.tb04387.x
Subject(s) - medicine , psychotropic drug , odds ratio , psychiatry , disease , confidence interval , logistic regression , alzheimer's disease , drug
We attempted to determine the relationship between psychiatric symptoms and psychotropic drug use in persons with Alzheimer's disease based on a multicenter patient registry of 671 community‐living persons diagnosed with the disease by published criteria. Logistic regression was performed to determine which symptoms were associated psychotropic use after controlling for age, sex, and Mini‐Mental Status Examination (MMSE) score. At least one psychotropic drug was reported by 31% of patients, and 66% had at least one psychiatric symptom. Antipsychotics were associated with a lower MMSE score (odds ratio=0.92, 95% confidence interval 0.88‐0.97), emotional lability (OR=4.52, 95% CI 1.69‐11.94), and hallucinations (OR=6.54, 95% CI 2.99‐14.26). Antidepressants were associated with depressive symptoms (OR=5.8, 95% CI 2.61‐13.46), and benzodiazepines with a lower MMSE score (OR=0.93, 95% CI 0.90‐0.97). Community‐living persons with Alzheimer's disease are frequently prescribed psychotropic drugs; however, more than 50% of patients with a psychiatric symptom did not report taking one of these agents. This suggests that alternative therapies and no treatment are also prevalent.