Does behavioral improvement with haloperidol or trazodone treatment depend on psychosis or mood symptoms in patients with dementia?
OBJECTIVES: Several previous studies have examined the effects of pharmacological interventions for agitated behavior in patients with dementia. However, the choice of medication in clinical practice continues to be directed largely by local pharmacotherapy culture rather than empirical treatment guidelines. We examined the relationship between behavioral improvement and co-occurring delusions and mood symptoms in patients with dementia who were treated with haloperidol, an antipsychotic medication, or trazodone, a serotonergic antidepressant. DESIGN: Randomized, double-blind, parallel-group, 9-week treatment trial. SETTING: Inpatient geropsychiatry unit. PARTICIPANTS: Twenty-eight patients with dementia and agitated or aggressive behaviors. INTERVENTION: Haloperidol 1 to 5 mg/day or trazodone 50 to 250 mg/day. MEASUREMENTS: Cohen-Mansfield Agitation Inventory (CMAI), Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (Ham-D), and delusional thoughts subscale and hallucinations subscale of the Behaviora
