Citation
(2008), "Alzheimer's", Nutrition & Food Science, Vol. 38 No. 6. https://doi.org/10.1108/nfs.2008.01738fab.006
Publisher
:Emerald Group Publishing Limited
Copyright © 2008, Emerald Group Publishing Limited
Alzheimer's
Article Type: Food facts June 2008 From: Nutrition & Food Science, Volume 38, Issue 6.
Despite the fact that the Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Authority (MHRA) restricted the use of antipsychotic drugs to subdue people with Alzheimer's and other forms of dementia back in 2004, according to the Alzheimer's Society they are still being given inappropriately to an estimated 100,000 people most of whom are being cared for in nursing homes.
However, as part of the government's first national dementia strategy due to be published this autumn experts are expected to recommend further restrictions on the use of drugs such as risperidone and olanzapine, drugs that have earned the label “chemical cosh” because of their heavy sedative effect.
The drugs in question were originally restricted by the MHRA because of reports suggesting they are linked to an increased risk of stroke. Then earlier this year, a study funded by the Alzheimer's Research Trust also claimed that long-term use of antipsychotic (or neuroleptic) drugs had no long-term benefits for dementia patients but instead led to patients dying around six months earlier than those who did not receive antipsychotic medication.
However, it is thought that many dementia patients in nursing homes are being prescribed drugs such as risperidone and olanzapine when they become agitated, despite the health risks involved. According to a report in The Guardian (June 19, 2008), around 60 per cent of patients in nursing homes are being prescribed antipsychotics.
The NHS spends a significant amount of money on dementia drugs in England in 2005, the bill almost reached 361 million. And with 700,000 people currently estimated to be suffering from dementia in this country, that sum could rise significantly as, according to government estimates, during the next 30 years the number of people with dementia is set to double.