Educational disparities in antipsychotic drug use among older people with and without dementia in Sweden

Abstract

People with dementia were five times more likely to use antipsychotic drugs than the general population of older adults. Also, lower education was associated with a higher use of antipsychotics, both in the general population and in the subgroup of persons with dementia. This finding highlights the importance of investigating healthcare inequalities also among cognitively impaired older adults.

Antipsychotic prescribing for Alzheimer’s disease and related disorders in specialized settings from 2010 to 2014 in France: a repeated cross-sectional study

“…OR decreasing as the educational level increased. This finding has already been reported in recent studies [36] and can have several explanatory hypotheses: a differential expression of symptoms in highly educated versus less educated individuals; a preference for nonpharmacological treatments expressed by the family of highly educated patients [37]; and, finally, the possibility of an adaptation of the physician’s attitude to the educational level of the patient and their family.…”

Potentially Inappropriate Anticholinergic Medication Use in Community-Dwelling Older Adults: A National Cross-Sectional Study

“…This suggests that education can possibly play a role in variation in medication use and potentially inappropriate medication use. A study by Wastesson et al [40] had similar findings; a lower educational level was associated with higher use of antipsychotic drugs in the general population of older adults, as well as in the subgroup of adults with dementia.…”

Does being assisted by care workers affect antipsychotics prescription among older people discharged from hospital?

“…Caregivers were reported to have a substantial effect on whether antipsychotics are prescribed in community‐dwelling older people, with an increased rate of prescription among people assisted by low‐educated caregivers . Interestingly, the present study is the first one showing such an association in patients discharged from acute care hospital where it would be less expected.…”