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. 2009 Oct-Dec;51(4):272-5.
doi: 10.4103/0019-5545.58292.

Clinical practice with antidementia and antipsychotic drugs: Audit from a geriatric clinic in India

Krishna Prasad  1 , Himanshu Gupta, Srikala Bharath, Om Prakash, P T Sivakumar, C Naveen Kumar, Mathew Varghese
Affiliations

Clinical practice with antidementia and antipsychotic drugs: Audit from a geriatric clinic in India

Krishna Prasad et al. Indian J Psychiatry. 2009 Oct-Dec.

Abstract

Background: Dementia is one of the most disabling disorders afflicting the elderly, with a staggering emotional and economic impact. Antidementia agents have been used for delaying cognitive decline. Antipsychotics are commonly prescribed for behavioral symptoms associated with dementia.

Objectives: To explore the use of anti-dementing agents and antipsychotics used in patients with a diagnosis of dementia Materials and Methods: A retrospective chart review method; geriatric clinic of tertiary care setting.

Results: The study sample included 51 consecutive patients with a diagnosis of dementia. The commonest subtype of dementia that was diagnosed was Alzheimer's disease (45%), followed by Frontotemporal dementia (25%).The commonest antidementia drug that was used was donepezil, which alone was prescribed in 27 patients (52%). The commonest antipsychotic used was quetiapine, which was used in 24 patients (47%).

Conclusions: The study found donepezil to be the most commonly prescribed antidementia drug and quetiapine to be the most commonly used antipsychotic in a tertiary care geriatric clinic, in a developing country. There is a need to study the cost-effectiveness of antidementia and antipsychotic drugs in patients with dementia, in developing countries.

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Conflict of interest statement

Conflict of Interest: None declared

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Pie diagram depicting the antidementia drugs used in patients with dementia
Figure 2
Figure 2
Pie diagram depicting the antipsychotics used in patients with dementia
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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