Tailoring adult psychiatric practices to the field of geriatrics.
The United States' population is aging. Epidemiological surveys suggest significant rates of mental illness amongst the rapidly growing over-65 cohort. A burgeoning experience and data base related to the developing sub-discipline of geriatric psychiatry is now available. This article synthesizes key issues and concepts as an introduction to geropsychiatric practice-in particular, a) the interface between medical illness and psychiatric expression in the elderly, b) delirium, c) dementia, and d) depression-and considers their interactions. Finally, there is a brief overview of geriatric psychopharmacology, followed by clinically-oriented discussions of each of the major classes of psychotropics as applied to a geriatric population.
Greenwald
B S
BS
Hillside Hospital, Psychiatric Division of Long Island Jewish Medical Center, Glen Oaks, New York 11004.
Kremen
N
N
Aupperle
P
P
D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D003693:Delirium / Q000209:etiology / Q000523:psychology / Q000628:therapy*; D003704:Dementia / Q000209:etiology / Q000523:psychology / Q000628:therapy*; D003866:Depressive Disorder / Q000209:etiology / Q000523:psychology / Q000628:therapy*; D003937:Diagnosis, Differential; D005260:Female; D005852:Geriatric Psychiatry / Q000639:trends*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D010348:Patient Care Team; D011619:Psychotropic Drugs / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000627:therapeutic use; D019966:Substance-Related Disorders / Q000209:etiology / Q000523:psychology / Q000628:therapy
D011619:Psychotropic Drugs