Key clinical point: More than a quarter of nursing home residents with dementia in Germany have prescriptions for medications of questionable benefit, as determined by a panel of geriatricians, in the months before they die.

Major finding: In the 90 days prior to death, more nursing home residents with dementia had a prescription for at least one medication of questionable benefit, compared with residents without dementia (26.8% vs. 20.1%). Acetylcholinesterase inhibitors, which are indicated for mild to moderate dementia, and lipid-lowering agents were among the medications of questionable benefit most often received by patients with dementia.

Study details: A retrospective study of claims data from 67,328 deceased nursing home residents with and without dementia in Germany.

Disclosures: The authors had no conflicts of interest.