Antipsychotic treatment of behavioral and psychological symptoms of dementia in geropsychiatric inpatients

Behavioral/psychological symptoms of dementia (BPSD) affect caregiver burden and transition from home to hospital or long-term care. The authors examined change in BPSD for dementia patients (from hospital admission to discharge) who were prescribed haloperidol (n = 289), olanzapine (n = 209), or risperidone (n = 500). Olanzapine was associated with significantly, greater overall improvement in BPSD (based on the Psychogeriatric Dependency Rating Scale total score) than risperidone or haloperidol. Olanzapine was significantly, superior on measures of active-, verbal-, and passive-aggression and delusions/hallucinations to risperidone or haloperidol, and, on manipulative behavior and noisiness, to risperidone. Results support the effectiveness of olanzapine in improving several BPSD in hospitalized dementia patients.