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Differences between countries in adult acute psychiatric hospitalization: Clinical features and drug prescription in Spain and the United States of America

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  23 March 2020

L. Gonzalez-Blanco ,
S. Bestene-Medina ,
E. Torio-Ojea ,
I. Abad-Acebedo ,
J. Rodriguez-Revuelta  and
G. Paniagua-Calzon
S. Bestene-Medina
Affiliation:
Servicio de Salud del Principado de Asturias, Psiquiatría, Oviedo, Spain
E. Torio-Ojea
Affiliation:
Servicio de Salud del Principado de Asturias, Psiquiatría, Oviedo, Spain
I. Abad-Acebedo
Affiliation:
Servicio de Salud del Principado de Asturias, Psiquiatría, Oviedo, Spain
J. Rodriguez-Revuelta
Affiliation:
Servicio de Salud del Principado de Asturias, Psiquiatría, Oviedo, Spain
G. Paniagua-Calzon
Affiliation:
Servicio de Salud del Principado de Asturias, Psiquiatría, Oviedo, Spain

Abstract

Introduction

Diverse prescription patterns and differences in length of psychiatry inpatient stay among European and American countries have been reported [1,2].

Objectives

To describe and compare clinical features and drug prescriptions in two Acute Psychiatric Units from Spain and USA.

Methods

Cross-sectional and comparative study. Sample: 73 inpatients from Reno (USA-Inpatients) and 65 from Oviedo (Spain-Inpatients) admitted to public Adult Acute Psychiatric Unit over a two-month period. Sociodemographic/clinical data and drug prescription were collected.

Results

Sociodemographic/clinical comparison (Table 1) and drug prescription differences (Table 2) are shown.

No significant differences in antipsychotics’ prescription except for the most frequently used [risperidone in Spain (36%)/ziprasidone in US (19.6%), Chi2 = 39.7**].

Conclusions

(A) Psychiatric inpatients in US are younger, have longer hospitalization, show more comorbid substance use disorder and differ from Spanish inpatients in frequency of diagnostic categories (schizophrenic disorders represent a larger proportion).

(B) Inpatients in Spain usually receive polytherapy, and are more frequently treated with antidepressants and anxiolytics, especially benzodiazepines. In contrast, USA-Inpatients take lithium more often [1,2].

Disclosure of interest

The authors have not supplied their declaration of competing interest.

Type
FC105
Information
European Psychiatry , Volume 33 , Issue S1: Abstracts of the 24th European Congress of Psychiatry , March 2016 , pp. S113
Copyright
Copyright © European Psychiatric Association 2016

Table 1

Table 2

References

Bitter, , Chou, , Ungvari, , et al.Prescribing for inpatients with schizophrenia: an international multi-center comparative study. Pharmacopsychiatry 2003; 36(4): 143–149Google ScholarPubMed
Auffarth, , Busse, , Dietrich, , et al.Length of psychiatry inpatient stay: comparison of mental health care outlining a case mix from a hospital in Germany and the United States of America. German J Psychiatry 2008; 11: 40–44Google Scholar
Figure 0

Table 1

Figure 1

Table 2

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