Dopamine Antagonist Prescribing Practices in Patients With Parkinson Disease

This study examines clinician prescribing habits at 3 VAMCs to see whether a change in the electronic medical record at 1 VAMC leads to a change in prescribing patterns of dopamine antagonists in patients with Parkinson disease compared with the other 2 centers.

Psychosis and nausea are common problems in patients with Parkinson disease (PD) and are often treated with dopamine antagonists, medications that can worsen parkinsonism. In 2 surveys of clinic patients with PD, 24.4% complained of nausea at least once in the month before the clinic visit, and 39.8% experienced hallucinations in the 3 months before the visit.(1,2)