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Benzodiazepine use among older adults with schizophrenia spectrum disorder: prevalence and associated factors in a multicenter study

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  07 May 2019

Jean-Pierre Schuster ,
Nicolas Hoertel ,
Armin von Gunten ,
Anne-Sophie Seigneurie ,
Frédéric Limosin  and
CSA Study group
Jean-Pierre Schuster*
Affiliation:
Old-Age Psychiatry Service, Lausanne University Hospital, Lausanne, Switzerland
Nicolas Hoertel
Affiliation:
Department of Psychiatry, AP-HP, Western Paris University Hospitals, 92130 Issy-les-Moulineaux, France INSERM UMR 894, Psychiatry and Neurosciences Center, Paris, France Paris Descartes University, Sorbonne Paris Cité, Paris, France
Armin von Gunten
Affiliation:
Old-Age Psychiatry Service, Lausanne University Hospital, Lausanne, Switzerland
Anne-Sophie Seigneurie
Affiliation:
Department of Psychiatry, AP-HP, Western Paris University Hospitals, 92130 Issy-les-Moulineaux, France
Frédéric Limosin
Affiliation:
Department of Psychiatry, AP-HP, Western Paris University Hospitals, 92130 Issy-les-Moulineaux, France INSERM UMR 894, Psychiatry and Neurosciences Center, Paris, France Paris Descartes University, Sorbonne Paris Cité, Paris, France
CSA Study group
Affiliation:
Old-Age Psychiatry Service, Lausanne University Hospital, Lausanne, Switzerland
*
Correspondence should be addressed to: Jean-Pierre Schuster, Old-Age Psychiatry Service, Lausanne University Hospital, Lausanne, Switzerland. Email: [email protected]
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Abstract

Objectives:

Data on psychotropic medications of older patients with schizophrenia spectrum disorder are scarce. Specifically, information about the use of benzodiazepines among older patients with schizophrenia spectrum disorder is very limited. Because benzodiazepine use in older patients has been associated with many disabling side effects, its use in actual practice must be described and questioned. This study aimed at exploring the prevalence of benzodiazepine use and the clinical factors associated with such use among older patients with schizophrenia spectrum disorder.

Methods/Design:

Data from the Cohort of individuals with Schizophrenia Aged 55 years or more (CSA) were used to examine the prevalence of benzodiazepine use among older patients with schizophrenia spectrum disorder. Demographic and clinical characteristics associated with benzodiazepine prescription were also explored.

Results:

The prevalence of benzodiazepine use was 29.8% of older patients with schizophrenia spectrum disorder. These patients were significantly more likely to have medical comorbidities, cognitive and social functioning impairments, to report a lifetime history of suicide attempt, to be institutionalized, and to have been hospitalized in a psychiatric service in the past year compared to those without a benzodiazepine prescription (all p<0.05). There were no between-group differences in schizophrenia severity and psychiatric comorbidity.

Conclusions:

Although it can be hypothesized that benzodiazepine prescription is part of a short-term therapeutic strategy toward patients with more severe trouble or comorbid disorders, our results suggest a strong link between benzodiazepine prescription and a particularly vulnerable subpopulation of older patients with schizophrenia spectrum disorder.

Keywords

elderlyschizophreniabenzodiazepinestreatment
Type
Original Research Article
Information
International Psychogeriatrics , Volume 32 , Issue 4: Issue Theme: Serious Mental Illnesses in Older Adults , April 2020 , pp. 441 - 451
Copyright
© International Psychogeriatric Association 2019

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Footnotes

¥

Members of the CSA (Cohort of individuals with Schizophrenia Aged 55 years or more) group are as follows:

Jean Adès, Charles Alezrah, Isabelle Amado, Gilles Amar, Ovidiu Andréi, Denis Arbault, Georges Archambault, Gilles Aurifeuille, Hervé Bardou, Michèle Bareil-Guérin, Pierre Barrau, Sarah Barrière, Claudine Barrouillet, Emilie Baup, Nadine Bazin, Béatrice Beaufils, Jalel Ben Ayed, Michel Benoit, Kader Benyacoub, Céline Béra-Potelle, Thérèse Bichet, Françoise Blanadet, Olivier Blanc, Julien Blanc-Comiti, Yvonne Blumenstock, Didier Boussiron, Anne-Marie Bouysse, Alain Brochard, Olivier Brochart, Bastien Bucheron, Marion Cabot, Vincent Camus, Jean-Marc Chabannes, Véronique Charlot, Thomas Charpeaud, Astrid Chevance, Cateline Clad-Mor, Colette Combes, Maricela Comisu, Bernard Cordier, François Costi, Jean-Paul Courcelles, Mercedes Creixell, Henry Cuche, Christine Cuervo-Lombard, Anis Dammak, David Da Rin, Jean-Bernard Denis, Hélène Denizot, Anne Deperthuis, Eric Diers, Smail Dirami, Didier Donneau, Pierre Dreano, Caroline Dubertret, Eric Duprat, Didier Duthoit, Christian Fernandez, Philippe Fonfrede, Nelly Freitas, Philippe Gasnier, Jacques Gauillard, Fabien Getten, Fabien Gierski, Fabien Godart, Raphaël Gourevitch, Aude Grassin Delyle, Juliette Gremion, Hélène Gres, Véronique Griner, Christophe Guerin-Langlois, Christian Guggiari, Olivier Guillin, Hamadi Hadaoui, Emmanuel Haffen, Cécile Hanon, Sadeq Haouzir, Cyril Hazif-Thomas, Anne Heron, Bérengère Hubsch, Isabelle Jalenques, Dominique Januel, Arthur Kaladjian, Jean-François Karnycheff, Oussama Kebir, Marie-Odile Krebs, Christine Lajugie, Marion Leboyer, Pierre Legrand, Michel Lejoyeux, Vincent Lemaire, Evelyne Leroy, Diane Levy-Chavagnat, Antoine Leydier, Chantal Liling, Pierre-Michel Llorca, Philippe Loeffel, Patrice Louville, Stéphane Lucas Navarro, Nicolas Mages, Mohamed Mahi, Odile Maillet, Aude Manetti, Catherine Martelli, Pascal Martin, Marc Masson, Isabelle Maurs-Ferrer, Joelle Mauvieux, Sylvain Mazmanian, Emmanuelle Mechin, Lila Mekaoui, Mostéfa Meniai, Agnès Metton, Amine Mihoubi, Maria Miron, Geneviève Mora, Valérie Niro Adès, Philippe Nubukpo, Cécile Omnes, Stéphanie Papin, Pierre Paris, Christine Passerieux, Jérôme Pellerin, Julie Perlbarg, Sylvie Perron, Annie Petit, François Petitjean, Christophe Portefaix, Dominique Pringuey, Andrei Radtchenko, Hassan Rahiou, Delphine Raucher-Chéné, Anne Rauzy, Lionel Reinheimer, Michel Renard, Margaux René, Charles-Edouard Rengade, Paul Reynaud, Didier Robin, Christelle Rodrigues, Aurélie Rollet, Fabien Rondepierre, Bernard Rousselot, Sarah Rubingher, Ghassen Saba, Jean-Pierre Salvarelli, Jean-Claude Samuelian, Corinne Scemama-Ammar, Franck Schurhoff, Daniel Sechter, Béatrice Segalas, Tiphaine Seguret, Amina Semmak, Frédéric Slama, Sophie Taisne, Mohamed Taleb, Jean-Louis Terra, Dominique Thefenne, Eric Tran, Rémi Tourtauchaux, Marie-Noëlle Vacheron, Pierre Vandel, Valérie Vanhoucke, Emmanuel Venet, Hélène Verdoux, Anne Viala, Gilles Vidon, Murielle Vitre, Jean-Luc Vurpas, Carole Wagermez, Michel Walter, Liova Yon and Xavier Zendjidjian.

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