[Psychotropic drugs, anxiety and depression in the elderly population. The EVA study]

Prevalence of psychotropic drugs use increases with age, while that of depressive or anxiety disorders remains stable. The aim of this study was to define risk factors of psychotrope use in individuals aged 60 to 70 years.

We studied a sample of 1389 individuals recruited from the electoral rolls of the city of Nantes (EVA study). Data on sociodemographic characteristics, tobacco and alcohol use, presence of any chronic disease and drug use were collected. Depressive symptoms were assessed by the Center for Epidemiologic Studies-Depression scale and anxiety symptoms by the Spielberger Inventory scale.

Fourteen per cent of men and 27% of women took at least one psychotropic drug. Multivariate logistic regression showed that psychotrope use was significantly associated with symptoms of anxiety or depression, in both men (odds-ratio = 3.9 [1.8-8.5]) and women (odds ratio = 4.0 [2.5-6.5]). The presence of chronic disease was not a risk factor for psychotrope use, particularly in men (odds ratio = 0.6 [0.3-1.3]). In both sexes, a high socio-economic level decreased the risk of psychotrope use.

The present study does not confirm the role of chronic disease as a major risk factor for psychotropic drug use in elderly. The interpretation of the association between psychotrope use and symptoms of anxiety or depression is limited by several factors, in particular the absence of categorical psychiatric diagnosis and the cross-sectional nature of our data.