Ames D, Chiu E
University of Melbourne Department of Psychiatry, Royal Melbourne Hospital, Parkville, VIC.
Med J Aust. 1993 Jul 19;159(2):116-20. doi: 10.5694/j.1326-5377.1993.tb137747.x.
Psychiatric disorders are common in the elderly. Antidepressants are probably underprescribed. In recurrent depression, lifelong prophylaxis may be required. Benzodiazepines can aggravate cognitive impairment and cause falls; they should not be used for chronic insomnia. Antipsychotic drugs are useful for the treatment of delusions and hallucinations but are less effective for disturbed behaviour in dementia sufferers. There are no satisfactory drugs for treating dementia at present, but promising palliative treatments for Alzheimer's disease are under trial.
精神疾病在老年人中很常见。抗抑郁药的处方量可能不足。在复发性抑郁症中，可能需要终身预防。苯二氮䓬类药物会加重认知障碍并导致跌倒；不应将其用于治疗慢性失眠。抗精神病药物对治疗妄想和幻觉有效，但对痴呆患者的行为紊乱效果较差。目前尚无令人满意的治疗痴呆症的药物，但针对阿尔茨海默病的有前景的姑息治疗正在试验中。
