Use of psychotropic drugs in gynecological, surgical, and medical wards of general hospitals

Objective: The purpose of the present study was to investigate the prevalence of psychotropic drug use and the predictors of use during hospitalization. Method: We investigated 728 patients admitted to medical, gynecological, and surgical wards of two non-university general hospitals in Austria for psychotropic drug use, psychiatric morbidity, and sociodemographic characteristics. Results: The use of psychotropics was highest in medical wards (67.6%), followed by surgical (59.3%), and gynecological wards (37.8%). Older age, psychiatric caseness, consultation by psychiatrists and use of psychotropics before admission were predictors for psychotropic drug use. Psychotropics were given for a longer duration to psychiatric cases than to non-cases. Anxiolytics were prescribed most often (39.6%), followed by hypnotics (16.9%), neuroleptics (10.7%), and antidepressants (7.0%). Conclusions: The fact that psychiatric illness is a significant predictor of psychotropic drug use suggests that these drugs were prescribed aptly. The longer duration of use among psychiatric cases supports the idea of appropriate prescriptions.