Psychotropic medication use among nursing home residents in Austria: a cross-sectional study.

ABSTRACT:

Background

The use of psychotropic medications and their adverse effects in frail elderly has been debated extensively. However, recent data from European studies show that these drugs are still frequently prescribed in nursing home residents. In Austria, prevalence data are lacking. We aimed to determine the prevalence of psychotropic medication prescription in Austrian nursing homes and to explore characteristics associated with their prescription.

Methods

Cross-sectional study and association analysis in forty-eight out of 50 nursing homes with 1844 out of a total of 2005 residents in a defined urban-rural region in Austria. Prescribed medication was retrieved from residents' charts. Psychotropic medications were coded according to the Anatomical Therapeutic Chemical Clas

SUBMITTER: Mann E 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC2697155 | biostudies-literature | 2009 May

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature