RESUMO
Background Dementia is a major neuropsychiatric disease defined by a progressive decline in cognitive functions. Atypical antipsychotics, antidepressants, and benzodiazepines are mainly prescribed for dementia. Many dementia pharmacological management options are associated with serious health risks. Therefore, this study aimed to determine the prevalence of antipsychotic, antidepressant, and benzodiazepine use in dementia patients in King Abdulaziz Medical City. Methodology A cross-sectional study was conducted at a tertiary hospital (King Abdulaziz Medical City, Jeddah) between December 2016 and January 2019. The participants were patients over the age of 65 years diagnosed with dementia. Data were collected from the medical records of the hospital after acquiring ethical approval. Patients with psychiatric diseases preceding the diagnosis of dementia, or patients with dementia-like symptoms as a side effect of any medications were excluded. The variables included were demographics, dementia subtypes, medications, and the presence or absence of chronic diseases. Results This study included 139 patients of whom 51.1% were males. The mean age was 82.8 ± 8.8 years. Moreover, 34.53% of the patients were prescribed medications for dementia management. Importantly, medications prescribed for dementia were classified as the following: atypical antipsychotics (20.86%), antidepressants (17.3%), and benzodiazepines (5%). The most commonly prescribed atypical antipsychotics were quetiapine (93.1%), risperidone (13.8%), and olanzapine (3.44%). For antidepressants, the most commonly prescribed medications for dementia were mirtazapine (62.5%), citalopram (45.8%), amitriptyline (8.3%), and paroxetine (4.2%). Moreover, most prescriptions for benzodiazepine were divided between lorazepam (71.4%), clonazepam (14.3%), and diazepam (14.3%). Conclusions This study's results were consistent with previous epidemiological studies that have been conducted worldwide regarding the increase in the use of antipsychotics and antidepressants, with the exception of benzodiazepines. To our knowledge, there is a lack of research regarding the medications prescribed in the geriatrics age group with dementia. Therefore, the outcomes of this study recommend initiating awareness campaigns among physicians, regarding the harm of using antipsychotics, especially for this age group. Lastly, future studies should focus on increased surveillance and evaluation of drug safety warnings in dementia patients to improve the outcomes of the intervention.
RESUMO
There has been an increasing demand for psychiatric care in recent decades, and "telepsychiatry" was developed to meet these demands. It is a type of telemedicine in which they provide many medical services virtually, such as therapy, counseling, and medication management. Telepsychiatry has numerous advantages, including lower costs, reduced stigma, and improved continuity of care. To the best of our knowledge, no previous studies in the western region of Saudi Arabia addressed patients satisfaction with telepsychiatry. This cross-sectional study aims to assess patient satisfaction in telepsychiatry in terms of accessibility and timeliness, appropriateness, effectiveness, and safety, and to see whether patient satisfaction affects their decision to use the service again in the future. A cross-sectional study was conducted using a prestructured survey on the basis of the Client Satisfaction Questionnaire-18, which is a validated questionnaire used to assess patients' satisfaction with the services provided to them. From January 2021 to July 2021, all male and female psychiatric patients over the age of 18 years who had psychiatric virtual appointments were included in this study. This study included 182 patients, of whom 106 were female. Patients were generally satisfied with the telepsychiatry services; 56.6%, 81.9%, 86.8%, and 91.2% of the participants were satisfied with the access and timeliness, appropriateness, effectiveness, and safety, respectively, and a total of 58.3% either strongly agree or agree of the overall satisfaction level. Depression and anxiety disorders were the most common psychiatric diseases. The statistical analysis revealed no significant relationships between patients' satisfaction and demographic characteristics. Telepsychiatry has been evaluated to meet the growing demand for psychiatric care; it also has significant advantages. Patients had an overall positive satisfaction level toward telepsychiatry service, and so the results of this study support the continuity of using telepsychiatry in the future. Further research area could include a comparison between patients' and providers' satisfaction levels with telepsychiatry.