Evidence map›Paper›PMID 29449869›Full record

ArticleAnnals of general psychiatry2018

Off-label prescription of psychiatric drugs by non-psychiatrist physicians in three general hospitals in Germany.

Caroline Lücke, Jürgen M Gschossmann, Teja W Grömer, Sebastian Moeller, Charlotte E Schneider, Aikaterini Zikidi, Alexandra Philipsen, Helge H O Müller

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Annals of general psychiatry, 2018. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 10 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
10citing papers in PubMed, 1 pooled it
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

10 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it.

  1. Pooled it
  2. Observational
  3. Article
  4. Article
  5. Article
  6. Article
  7. GABAFrontiers in psychiatry · 2022
    Review
  8. Article
  9. Off-Label Medication: From a Simple Concept to Complex Practical Aspects.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2021
    Review
  10. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

8 authors.

Caroline LückeMedical Campus University of Oldenburg, School of Medicine and Health Sciences, Psychiatry and Psychotherapy-University Hospital, Karl-Jaspers-Klinik, Hermann-Ehlers-Straße 7, 26160 Bad Zwischenahn, Germany.
Jürgen M GschossmannDepartment of Internal Medicine, Klinikum Forchheim, Forchheim, Germany.
Teja W Grömer3Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Friedrich-Alexander-University Erlangen-Nuremberg, Erlangen, Germany.
Sebastian MoellerMedical Campus University of Oldenburg, School of Medicine and Health Sciences, Psychiatry and Psychotherapy-University Hospital, Karl-Jaspers-Klinik, Hermann-Ehlers-Straße 7, 26160 Bad Zwischenahn, Germany.
Charlotte E SchneiderMedical Campus University of Oldenburg, School of Medicine and Health Sciences, Psychiatry and Psychotherapy-University Hospital, Karl-Jaspers-Klinik, Hermann-Ehlers-Straße 7, 26160 Bad Zwischenahn, Germany.
Aikaterini ZikidiMedical Campus University of Oldenburg, School of Medicine and Health Sciences, Psychiatry and Psychotherapy-University Hospital, Karl-Jaspers-Klinik, Hermann-Ehlers-Straße 7, 26160 Bad Zwischenahn, Germany.
Alexandra PhilipsenMedical Campus University of Oldenburg, School of Medicine and Health Sciences, Psychiatry and Psychotherapy-University Hospital, Karl-Jaspers-Klinik, Hermann-Ehlers-Straße 7, 26160 Bad Zwischenahn, Germany.
Helge H O MüllerMedical Campus University of Oldenburg, School of Medicine and Health Sciences, Psychiatry and Psychotherapy-University Hospital, Karl-Jaspers-Klinik, Hermann-Ehlers-Straße 7, 26160 Bad Zwischenahn, Germany.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundOff-label prescribing of psychoactive drugs is a common practice in psychiatry. Here, we sought to investigate the frequency of off-label prescribing in a population of hospitalized patients with a somatic illness who were also suffering from a psychiatric pathology.

methodsUsing a prospective, observational design, we collected data from 982 hospitalized patients with a somatic illness for whom a psychiatric consultation was requested because of the presence of additional psychiatric symptoms. Data were collected at three hospitals in Germany. Demographic and clinical data, including the previous psychoactive medications and an assessment of the suitability of the previous medications, were recorded and analyzed.

resultsData on the previous psychiatric medications were available for 972 patients. In 16.6% of patients, at least one psychoactive drug had been prescribed off-label, 20.2% had received on-label medication, and 63.2% had not received any psychiatric medication. Among all patients receiving psychiatric medication, 45.1% had received off-label medication. The logistic regression analysis showed a significant influence of age on the likelihood of receiving off-label medication (

conclusionsOur data show a high frequency of the off-label prescription of psychoactive drugs by physicians treating patients with somatic illnesses in general hospitals. Because more than half of these cases were judged to be "not indicated", these prescriptions indicate a potential risk to patients. Furthermore, the classes of drugs that were most frequently prescribed off-label, benzodiazepines and antipsychotics, both show a substantial risk profile, particularly for elderly patients.

Indexed as

Off-label prescriptionPsychotropic medicationRisk profile

Identifiers

PMID29449869
PMCPMC5806239

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.