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51/100

✓ Peer-reviewed alzhub usefulness score 51 out of 100. Risk factors

Topic: Risk, prevention and care in population studies

In 2012, the national prevalence of antipsychotic drug use was 20.7% for elderly patients with dementia, with a national incidence of 3.9%. The prevalence ranged from 17.0% to 23.3% in the five regions and from 7.5% to 33.1% in the 98 municipalities, demonstrating an over four-fold difference. The observed geographical variation was more pronounced at municipal level as compared to regional level, suggesting that the variation may be related to variances in clinical practice in primary care. This study highlights an urgent need for further educating professional carers and physicians to guide non-pharmacological as well as pharmacological management of neuropsychiatric symptoms in elderly patients with dementia.

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APA 7th

Zakarias, J. K., Jensen‐Dahm, C., Nørgaard, A., Stevnsborg, L., Gasse, C., Andersen, B. G., et al. (2016). Geographical Variation in Antipsychotic Drug Use in Elderly Patients with Dementia: A Nationwide Study. Journal of Alzheimer s Disease. https://doi.org/10.3233/jad-160485

Vancouver

Zakarias JK, Jensen‐Dahm C, Nørgaard A, Stevnsborg L, Gasse C, Andersen BG, et al. Geographical Variation in Antipsychotic Drug Use in Elderly Patients with Dementia: A Nationwide Study. Journal of Alzheimer s Disease. 2016. doi:10.3233/jad-160485. PMID: 27567863.

BibTeX

@article{zakarias2016-27567863,
  author  = {Zakarias, Johanne Købstrup and Jensen‐Dahm, Christina and Nørgaard, Ane and Stevnsborg, Lea and Gasse, Christiane and Andersen, Bodil Gramkow and Jakobsen, Søren and Waldorff, Frans Boch and others},
  title   = {{Geographical Variation in Antipsychotic Drug Use in Elderly Patients with Dementia: A Nationwide Study}},
  journal = {Journal of Alzheimer s Disease},
  year    = {2016},
  doi     = {10.3233/jad-160485},
  pmid    = {27567863},
  url     = {https://doi.org/10.3233/jad-160485}
}

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Key findings

In 2012, the national prevalence of antipsychotic drug use was 20.7% for elderly patients with dementia, with a national incidence of 3.9%.
The prevalence ranged from 17.0% to 23.3% in the five regions and from 7.5% to 33.1% in the 98 municipalities, demonstrating an over four-fold difference.
The observed geographical variation was more pronounced at municipal level as compared to regional level, suggesting that the variation may be related to variances in clinical practice in primary care.
This study highlights an urgent need for further educating professional carers and physicians to guide non-pharmacological as well as pharmacological management of neuropsychiatric symptoms in elderly patients with dementia.

Why it matters

This study found that antipsychotic drug use in elderly patients with dementia varied more than four-fold between municipalities, suggesting differences in clinical practice in primary care. It calls for better education on managing neuropsychiatric symptoms, but it does not test a dementia treatment or cure.

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Study details

Study designcross-sectional
Participants34,536
Effect size20.7%; 3.9%; 17.0% to 23.3%
Evidence strengthLow

How this study scored 51/100

Published in a peer-reviewed journal, and it is a snapshot of people at one point in time. Scored zero for randomised / blinded because the record does not state it.

Component	Points	Why
Journal tier	7 / 10	Tier 3 — peer-reviewed journal (Journal of Alzheimer s Disease)
Journal's citation record	2 / 4	Journal of Alzheimer s Disease: journal h-index 218 (OpenAlex, 2026-10-29)
Study design	4 / 12	A snapshot of people at one point in time
Strength of evidence	1 / 5	Rated “low” in our summary
Peer-review validation	10 / 10	Peer-reviewed. Published as an article in a named peer-reviewed journal.
How recent	1 / 5	2016 — within 20 year(s) of the newest study here
Sample size	4 / 4	34,536 participants
Effect reported	2 / 3	Effect reported as a number, without an interval or test
Studied in people	3 / 3	Studied in people (participant count stated)
Randomised / blinded	0 / 2	No randomisation or blinding stated — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0)
Times cited	3 / 7	Cited 19 times (OpenAlex, 2026-10-10)
Citations per year	1 / 5	1.6 citations a year over 12 year(s) since 2016
Impact for its field and year	2 / 6	Cited 1.3× the average for papers of its field and year (OpenAlex FWCI)
Cited by studies here	1 / 6	Cited by 1 other studies in this library
Still being cited	0 / 4	Cited 2 times in 2024–2026 (2026 still in progress; OpenAlex)
Senior author's track record	3 / 4	Last-listed author Gunhild Waldemar: h-index 80 (OpenAlex, whole career)
Institution's track record	1 / 3	University of Copenhagen: institution h-index 1,378 (OpenAlex)
Multi-centre collaboration	2 / 3	OpenAlex lists 8 institution(s) in 1 country
Indexed in PubMed	2 / 2	Indexed in PubMed (PMID 27567863)
Free to read	2 / 2	Free to read
Total	51 / 100	—

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