[Changes in drug use during a stay in a psychogeriatric nursing home].
OBJECTIVE
To describe the changes in drug intake during institutionalization in a Dutch psychogeriatric nursing home.


METHODS
Psychogeriatric nursing home Joachim en Anna in Nijmegen, the Netherlands.


METHODS
Retrospective analysis of medical charts.


METHODS
In 390 patients drug intake (sixteen drug groups) at admission, after six weeks, at half yearly intervals and on the day of death was recorded in a longitudinal fashion, as were side effects. Increase or decrease in drug intake was tested by means of linear regression analysis.


RESULTS
After an initial decrease there was a gradual increase in mean drug intake during institutionalization. Laxatives and to a lesser degree drugs for the respiratory tract and heart were mostly responsible for this increase. In the other groups no change or even decrease was noted. The degree of dependency and the type of dementia had an influence on these changes. At the day of death analgesics, morphinomimetics and bronchodilators were the most frequent drugs. Neuroleptics caused most of the side effects observed.


CONCLUSIONS
Prescription of laxatives is mostly responsible for the increase in mean drug intake in this Dutch psychogeriatric nursing home.
Koopmans
R T
RT
Verpleeghuis Joachim en Anna, Nijmegen.
de Vaan
H H
HH
van den Hoogen
H J
HJ
Gribnau
F W
FW
Hekster
Y A
YA
van Weel
C
C
D000368:Aged; D000544:Alzheimer Disease / Q000188:drug therapy; D002400:Cathartics / Q000627:therapeutic use; D003704:Dementia / Q000188:drug therapy*; D015161:Dementia, Multi-Infarct / Q000188:drug therapy; D004363:Drug Utilization; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007326:Institutionalization; D007902:Length of Stay; D008137:Longitudinal Studies; D008297:Male; D009735:Nursing Homes; D012189:Retrospective Studies
D002400:Cathartics
Veranderingen in geneesmiddelengebruik tijdens verblijf in een psychogeriatrisch verpleeghuis.