Geographical Variation in Opioid Use in Elderly Patients with Dementia: A Nationwide Study
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Geographical Variation in Opioid Use in Elderly Patients with Dementia : A Nationwide Study. / Jensen-Dahm, Christina; Zakarias, Johanne Købstrup; Gasse, Christiane; Waldemar, Gunhild.
In: Journal of Alzheimer's Disease, Vol. 70, No. 4, 2019, p. 1209-1216.Research output: Contribution to journal › Journal article › Research › peer-review
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TY - JOUR
T1 - Geographical Variation in Opioid Use in Elderly Patients with Dementia
T2 - A Nationwide Study
AU - Jensen-Dahm, Christina
AU - Zakarias, Johanne Købstrup
AU - Gasse, Christiane
AU - Waldemar, Gunhild
PY - 2019
Y1 - 2019
N2 - Background: We recently reported frequent use of opioids among elderly with dementia. Discrepancies in clinical practice may in part explain the higher use of opioids in elderly with dementia, which geographical variation may be able to clarify. Objective: To investigate geographical variation in opioid use in elderly with dementia compared to elderly without dementia. Methods: Register-based cross-sectional study in the entire elderly (≥65 years) population of Denmark in 2015. Data included place of residence, prescriptions, and discharge diagnoses from hospital contacts. Prevalence of opioid use among elderly with (n = 36,014) and without dementia (n = 1,011,787) was compared nationwide across the five Danish regions using logistic regression analysis and for the 98 municipalities using age and sex standardization. Results: 32.5% of elderly with dementia and 16.9% without were treated with an opioid in 2015. For home-living elderly with dementia, there was a 4-fold difference in opioid use (9.4 to 36.8%) between municipalities compared to a 1.6-fold (12.7 to 20.2%) difference for elderly without. In nursing home residents there was a 2-fold difference (dementia: 26.5 to 55.2%; no dementia: 31.8 to 60.4%). Differences between the five regions were minor. Conclusion: Opioid use in elderly with dementia was frequent and almost twice as high compared to elderly without dementia, which may challenge patient safety. The pronounced geographical variations at municipality level, particularly among elderly with dementia, indicate differences in the approach to treatment of chronic pain in primary care. Our study suggests that more guidance on treatment of pain in elderly with dementia is needed.
AB - Background: We recently reported frequent use of opioids among elderly with dementia. Discrepancies in clinical practice may in part explain the higher use of opioids in elderly with dementia, which geographical variation may be able to clarify. Objective: To investigate geographical variation in opioid use in elderly with dementia compared to elderly without dementia. Methods: Register-based cross-sectional study in the entire elderly (≥65 years) population of Denmark in 2015. Data included place of residence, prescriptions, and discharge diagnoses from hospital contacts. Prevalence of opioid use among elderly with (n = 36,014) and without dementia (n = 1,011,787) was compared nationwide across the five Danish regions using logistic regression analysis and for the 98 municipalities using age and sex standardization. Results: 32.5% of elderly with dementia and 16.9% without were treated with an opioid in 2015. For home-living elderly with dementia, there was a 4-fold difference in opioid use (9.4 to 36.8%) between municipalities compared to a 1.6-fold (12.7 to 20.2%) difference for elderly without. In nursing home residents there was a 2-fold difference (dementia: 26.5 to 55.2%; no dementia: 31.8 to 60.4%). Differences between the five regions were minor. Conclusion: Opioid use in elderly with dementia was frequent and almost twice as high compared to elderly without dementia, which may challenge patient safety. The pronounced geographical variations at municipality level, particularly among elderly with dementia, indicate differences in the approach to treatment of chronic pain in primary care. Our study suggests that more guidance on treatment of pain in elderly with dementia is needed.
KW - Analgesics
KW - dementia
KW - elderly
KW - opioid
KW - pain
U2 - 10.3233/JAD-190413
DO - 10.3233/JAD-190413
M3 - Journal article
C2 - 31322575
AN - SCOPUS:85071228176
VL - 70
SP - 1209
EP - 1216
JO - Journal of Alzheimer's Disease
JF - Journal of Alzheimer's Disease
SN - 1387-2877
IS - 4
ER -
ID: 231242408