Sex, ethnicity, and antipsychotic medication use in patients with psychosis

Abstract

Previous studies suggested that African–American patients with psychotic disorders receive higher doses of antipsychotic medication than white patients, are more likely to receive depot antipsychotics, and are less likely to be prescribed second-generation antipsychotics. African–American men in particular may be most likely to receive excessive doses of antipsychotics and depot antipsychotics, although this is less clear. Few studies have examined how sex and ethnicity interactions affect treatment of psychotic disorders. In this study, we examined whether the interaction of sex and ethnicity predicted the use of depot antipsychotics and the dosing of antipsychotics in a sample of inpatients with psychotic disorders. The inpatient records of 167 patients with psychotic disorders were evaluated for type and dose of medication at discharge. African–American men received depot antipsychotic medication more frequently than African–American women and white patients. This difference persisted after controlling for sociodemographic and clinical variables. African–American men and women with psychotic mood disorders were also more likely to be discharged on high antipsychotic doses compared with white patients. There were no ethnic or sex differences in the dosing of antipsychotics for the treatment of schizophrenia spectrum disorders. There were also no ethnic or sex differences in the use of second-generation antipsychotics.