City-wide survey of drug patterns among non-institutionalized mentally retarded persons

Abstract

This was a survey of 1,012 non-institutionalized mentally retarded persons living in a medium-sized metropolitan area. The sample was drawn from special schools and two service agencies in Auckland that serve preschool and adult retarded people. These are the main organizations serving this population in Auckland, and collectively they include a large proportion of non-institutionalized retarded individuals in this city. A comprehensive summary of current medication was obtained for each subject. A variety of demographic, medical, social, and sleep data were collected and, where appropriate, information was gathered regarding time elapsed since the last seizure. Two percent of preschoolers, 3% of special school students, and 14% of adults were receiving psychotropic drugs. Anticonvulsant drugs were prescribed for 31% of preschoolers, 17% of special school cases, and 18% of the adults. A large proportion of the demographic, medical, and social/ sleep variables were associated with drug prescription patterns. These factors were discussed with respect to other surveys, and possible explanations were offered to account for their relationship to pharmacotherapy.