[The use of psychotropic drugs in prison (CP Madrid III)]. / Uso de Psicofármacos en prisión (CP Madrid III).

The use of psychotropic drugs in primary care has exponentially increased and prisons are no exception. These drugs are often prescribed in order to find therapeutic uses in the fields of personality disorders, addictions, and dysfunctional behaviours that have not been accepted as indications (compassive use). This study enabled us to make a detailed description of the use of psychiatric drugs at the Madrid III prison, a centre with one of the lowest levels of pharmaceutical expenditure in the region. For a two-week period, all prescriptions of psychotropic drugs were collected and registered along with data of several possible conditioning factors. 20.5% of the population was receiving some kind of psychiatric drug; 76% of those inmates undergoing treatment were receiving one or two psychotropic drugs; 65% were taking sedatives, 38% antidepressants and 27% antipsychotic medication. The total amount of psychotropics consumed was 9,840 DDDs, 46% of which were sedatives, 17% of those being antidepressants and the other 14% antipsychotics. The total cost of the fortnight's treatment was 5,379 euros, 72% of which was spent on antipsychotic medication. There are signs that compassive use of the latest generation of antipsychotics and antiepileptics, and the newer antidepressants are a main cause of the dramatic increase in cost, and cost efficiency has not always been clearly demonstrated. One of the key influencing factors on amount, type and cost of treatment was the prescriptor. An unexpected result was that of finding no relationship between age, nationality, grade or other individual variables and prescription of different kind of medication, with the exception of benzodiazepines.

Uso de Psicofármacos en prisión (CP Madrid III) / Theuse of psychotropic drugs in prison ()CP Madrid III)

El uso de psicofármacos en el entorno de atención primaria está aumentando exponencialmente y el medio penitenciario no constituye una excepción a esta tendencia. Con alguna frecuencia estos tratamientos se prescriben buscando utilidades terapéuticas en relación con trastornos de personalidad, dependencias y conductas disfuncionales que no han sido aceptadas como indicaciones (uso compasivo). El presente estudio ha permitido una descripción pormenorizada del uso de psicofármacos en el Centro Penitenciario (CP) Madrid III, uno de los centros con menor gasto farmacéutico de la Comunidad Autónoma. Durante dos semanas se registraron todas las prescripciones de psicofármacos junto con diversos parámetros que pudiesen resultar condicionantes. Un 23,46% de la población recibía algún tipo de psicofármaco; el 76% de los internos a tratamiento recibía uno o dos psicofármacos, un 65% tenía prescritos ansiolíticos, un 38% antidepresivos y un 27% antipsicóticos. El consumo total de psicofármacos ascendió a 9.840 Dosis Diarias de Mantenimiento, un 46% de las cuales correspondían con ansiolíticos, un 17% con antidepresivos y un 14% con antipsicóticos. En dos semanas, el gasto total sumó 5.379 euros y los antipsicóticos acumularon un 72% del coste (3.857 euros). Hay indicios de que el uso compasivo de nuevos antipsicóticos y antiepilépticos supone un porcentaje sustancial del incremento del gasto con dudosa utilidad. Los resultados del estudio apuntan al médico prescriptor como agente primordial en relación con qué, cuánto y con qué coste se prescribe. Al contrario de lo que cabía esperar, no se encontró asociación entre variables como la edad, nacionalidad, grado o tipo de condena de los internos y la prescripción de los distintos subgrupos de psicofármacos con la excepción de las benzodiacepinas

The use of psychotropic drugs in primary care has exponentially increased and prisons are no exception. These drugs are often prescribed in order to find therapeutic uses in the fields of personality disorders, addictions, and dysfunctional behaviours that have not been accepted as indications (compassive use). This study enabled us to make a detailed description of the use of psychiatric drugs at the Madrid III prison, a centre with one of the lowest levels of pharmaceutical expenditure in the region. For a two-week period, all prescriptions of psychotropic drugs were collected and registered along with data of several possible conditioning factors. 20.5% of the population was receiving some kind of psychiatric drug; 76% of those inmates undergoing treatment were receiving one or two psychotropic drugs; 65% were taking sedatives, 38% antidepressants and 27% antipsychotic medication. The total amount of psychotropics consumed was 9,840 DDDs, 46% of which were sedatives, 17% of those being antidepressants and the other 14% antipsychotics. The total cost of the fortnight’s treatment was 5,379 euros, 72% of which was spent on antipsychotic medication. There are signs that compassive use of the latest generation of antipsychotics and antiepileptics, and the newer antidepressants are a main cause of the dramatic increase in cost, and cost efficiency has not always been clearly demonstrated. One of the key influencing factors on amount, type and cost of treatment was the prescriptor. An unexpected result was that of finding no relationship between age, nationality, grade or other individual variables and prescription of different kind of medication, with the exception of benzodiazepines