Antipsychotics Vary in Mortality Risk in Dementia Patients

Behavioral symptoms in dementia are often treated with antipsychotics, but increased risks for mortality have been associated with such treatment. Using retrospective cohort data from national Veterans Affairs registries, researchers in a study supported by the National Institute of Mental Health compared 6-month mortality rates in 33,604 patients aged 65 or older with dementia who were started as outpatients on one of three antipsychotics or one non-antipsychotic (after ≥1 year without antipsychotics or anticonvulsants).

Compared to mortality risk with risperidone, mortality risk increased significantly with haloperidol (hazard ratio, 1.54); was statistically similar with olanzapine and with valproic acid and its derivatives; and was signif…