Study on the efficacy and tolerability of amisulpride in medical/surgical inpatients with delirium admitted to a general hospital.
OBJECTIVE
To evaluate the efficacy and safety of amisulpride in medical inpatients who present with delirium.


METHODS
Open label prospective study with 7-day follow-up. Forty hospital inpatients with delirium were recruited, seven of whom died and two of whom refused medication. The average dose of amisulpride for delirium treatment was 200-300 mg/day. Daily assessments were performed with Delirium Rating Scale (DRS), Positive Subscale of the Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS-P), Mini Mental State Examination (MMSE), Neurological Subscale of the UKU side effect rating scale. Variance analysis was performed through repeated measurements, with the general linear model with paired comparisons and Bonferroni correction for each measured variable.


RESULTS
Patients showed significant improvement on the DRS from the first day of treatment DRS = 17.55 until day 7 DRS = 7.26 (F = 92.485; p < 0.001), psychotic symptoms improved from first day PANSS-P = 18.26 to last day PANSS-P = 9.35 (F = 144.83; p < 0.001). Cognitive status showed a significant improvement from day 2 MMSE = 18.71 until day 7 MMSE = 24.06 (F = 96.56; p < 0.001), and the neurological subscale of the UKU side effect rating scale showed a significant improvement the last day with respect to baseline pretreatment level (F = 7.539; p = 0.01).


CONCLUSIONS
These results suggest a good response to amisulpride in the acute phase of delirium, although further randomized controlled studies must be performed.
Pintor
L
L
Psychiatry Department, Neurosciences Institute, Hospital Clínico de Barcelona, C/Roselló 140, 08036 Barcelona, Spain. lpintor@clinic.ub.es
Fuente
E
E
Bailles
E
E
Matrai
S
S
D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000077582:Amisulpride; D014150:Antipsychotic Agents / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000627:therapeutic use; D003693:Delirium / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000188:drug therapy*; D004305:Dose-Response Relationship, Drug; D005260:Female; D006760:Hospitalization; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008609:Mental Status Schedule; D008875:Middle Aged; D010865:Pilot Projects; D011446:Prospective Studies; D011569:Psychiatric Status Rating Scales; D013469:Sulpiride / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000031:analogs & derivatives* / Q000627:therapeutic use; D016896:Treatment Outcome
D014150:Antipsychotic Agents; D013469:Sulpiride; D000077582:Amisulpride