The PBAC is planning a fresh review of antipsychotic prescribing in aged care after a report found the use of risperidone to treat dementia symptoms was on the rise.

The committee asked its Drug Utilisation Sub-Committee (DUSC) to monitor use of the drugs last year, having rejected a recommendation from the Royal Commission into Aged Care Quality and Safety to restrict antipsychotic initiation to geriatricians and psychiatrists.

In its June report, DUSC said the number of patients supplied an antipsychotic remained steady between 2016 and 2022, whereas dispensing rates for over-65s declined.  

But while “the overall utilisation of risperidone for the treatment of behavioural and psychological symptoms of dementia was declining”, in aged care facilities it went up.