OBJECTIVE: This paper reports the prescriptions of psychotropic drugs made to 2962 patients living in 265 residential facilities (RFs) in Italy. METHOD: Structured interviews were administered to RF managers and staff to obtain data on patients' sociodemographic and clinical characteristics; information about current drug prescriptions were obtained from clinical records. RESULTS: Polypharmacy was common: on average, each treated patient was taking 2.7 drugs (+/-1.1). The association of one atypical antipsychotic with one benzodiazepine represented the most common prescription profile. The variable most consistently associated with a higher likelihood of receiving polypharmacy was a history of admission to an acute general hospital psychiatric ward in the previous 12 months. Many prescriptions were loosely related to specific diagnoses. CONCLUSION: Psychotropic drug prescription patterns for severe patients living in RFs are characterized by substantial rates of polypharmacy. Specific guidelines may be helpful for long-stay patients living in RFs, who exhibit complex care needs.
OBJECTIVE: This paper reports the prescriptions of psychotropic drugs made to 2962 patients living in 265 residential facilities (RFs) in Italy. METHOD: Structured interviews were administered to RF managers and staff to obtain data on patients' sociodemographic and clinical characteristics; information about current drug prescriptions were obtained from clinical records. RESULTS: Polypharmacy was common: on average, each treated patient was taking 2.7 drugs (+/-1.1). The association of one atypical antipsychotic with one benzodiazepine represented the most common prescription profile. The variable most consistently associated with a higher likelihood of receiving polypharmacy was a history of admission to an acute general hospital psychiatric ward in the previous 12 months. Many prescriptions were loosely related to specific diagnoses. CONCLUSION: Psychotropic drug prescription patterns for severe patients living in RFs are characterized by substantial rates of polypharmacy. Specific guidelines may be helpful for long-stay patients living in RFs, who exhibit complex care needs.
Authors: G de Girolamo; V Candini; C Buizza; C Ferrari; M E Boero; G M Giobbio; N Goldschmidt; S Greppo; L Iozzino; P Maggi; A Melegari; P Pasqualetti; G Rossi Journal: Soc Psychiatry Psychiatr Epidemiol Date: 2013-05-28 Impact factor: 4.328
Authors: Denise Razzouk; Monica Kayo; Aglaé Sousa; Guilherme Gregorio; Hugo Cogo-Moreira; Andrea Alves Cardoso; Jair de Jesus Mari Journal: PLoS One Date: 2015-04-08 Impact factor: 3.240