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GERICLINICS

Revision grid · Paper II

Paper II — Psychiatry, law and ethics

The author's own summary for this section of the source document, where it follows the answer to Capacity assessment and consent in the cognitively impaired patient.

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Appendix. Consolidated Night-Before Master Sheet [all 32 questions]

One line of core content and one latest update for every topic in this compilation, merged from all three source sets.

Topic Must-write core Must-write latest update

Psychogeriatrics

Delusional disorder Non-bizarre delusion ≥1 month, function preserved; partition Xanomeline–trospium (KarXT) FDA 2024, first delusions in VLOSLP; sensory loss + isolation are key risks; muscarinic antipsychotic; ATLAS — amisulpride atypicals at ¼–⅓ dose 100 mg Bipolar in late life Late-onset mania = secondary mania until proved otherwise; ISBD OABD: lithium 0.4–0.8 mEq/L (60–79 y), 0.4– irritability not euphoria; GERI-BD — lithium ≈ divalproex 0.7 (≥80 y)

Somatoform / New onset after 60 is rare — exclude organic disease and ICD-11 Bodily Distress Disorder; FND is a rule-in conversion depression; Hoover's sign; CBT first-line; avoid repeat diagnosis investigations Grief Complicated grief ≥6 months; risk = sudden/traumatic death, Prolonged Grief Disorder — DSM-5-TR ≥12 months, ambivalent relationship; psychotherapy first-line ICD-11 ≥6 months Personality disorders Cluster A prominent, B burns out, C persists; new-onset ICD-11 — single dimensional diagnosis, severity + change = organic (FTD) until proved otherwise; Diogenes 5 trait domains syndrome Sexual dysfunction Desire persists in old age; ED predicts CVD; SSRIs Vaginal oestrogen / prasterone / ospemifene safe commonest drug cause; PLISSIT model; PDE-5i first-line for GSM (NAMS-IMS)

Benzodiazepine 10% community, 25% nursing home; SDS score ≥6; convert ASAM 2025 — taper most older adults, 5–10% dependence to diazepam and taper over months; withdrawal → confusion, every 2–4 weeks, no forced taper; BIND seizures Nicotine dependence Quitting benefits even in the 70s; 5 A's; combination NRT / Cytisinicline — ORCA-2/ORCA-3, efficacy like varenicline / bupropion; cessation raises clozapine and varenicline, fewer GI effects olanzapine levels Substance misuse Three categories — medications, sanctioned substances, Cannabis fastest-rising in ≥65; Beers 2023 opioid illicit; prescribed BZD/opioid misuse dominates; non- + BZD/gabapentinoid caution confrontational age-specific programmes work better MHCA 2017 Sec 4 capacity, Sec 5 advance directive, Sec 14 NR, Sec 18 Ayushman Bharat Vay Vandana — ₹5 lakh cover access, Sec 21(4) insurance, Sec 89/90 supported admission, for all aged ≥70, mental health included Sec 115 suicide Capacity and consent Capacity is clinical, competence is legal; four elements; Supported over substituted decision-making decision-specific; unwise ≠ incapable; MacCAT-T / ACE; (UNCRPD Art 12); 2024 Lancet Commission — early optimise before declaring absent ACP GDS Yesavage 1982; somatic items excluded; GDS-15 cut-off ≥5; USPSTF 2023 Grade B — screen all adults where GDS-30 cut-off ≥11; invalid if MMSE <15 → Cornell Scale follow-up exists Mood, Anxiety & Suicide Depression — MDD 1–5% community; symptoms 8–16%; higher in primary USPSTF 2023 Grade B — screen all adults including prevalence care, hospital and LTC; LASI ~8% in Indians ≥60 ≥65 Depression — "Depression without sadness"; somatic complaints; Lancet Commission 2024 — depression a presentation psychomotor symptoms; nihilistic delusions; anxious distress modifiable dementia risk factor specifier; bereavement exclusion removed Depression — Stepped care; SSRI first-line at half dose; 6–12 weeks for full OPTIMUM 2023 — aripiprazole augmentation, treatment effect; ≥1 year after first recurrence, lifelong after second remission 28% vs 19%, fewer falls Antidepressants Sertraline/escitalopram first; avoid TCAs and paroxetine; Hyperbolic tapering (Maudsley 2024); withdrawal is hyponatraemia, falls, GI bleeding, QTc; mirtazapine if not relapse anorexia + insomnia ECT First-line if severe, psychotic, catatonic, suicidal or not ELEKT-D 2023 — ketamine non-inferior in non-eating; efficacy undiminished with age; seizure threshold psychotic TRD; ultrabrief right unilateral ECT rises; older age predicts better response; reversible cognitive effects only Suicide WHO at age 75: men 50/100,000, women 16/100,000; India NSPS 2022 — 10% reduction by 2030; NCRB attempt-to-completion 4:1 vs 200:1; 20–50% see the PCP elderly suicides up 40% from 2019 to 2022 within a week; depression strongest risk factor, self-harm strongest predictor Anxiety (general) Not normal ageing; most prevalent yet most under-treated; USPSTF 2023 — Grade B for 19–64, I-statement agoraphobia and panic > phobias > GAD; SSRIs first-line, up for ≥65 to 6 weeks; no antipsychotics; benzodiazepines short-term only GAD Half lifelong, half onset within last 5 years; health-centred MBSR non-inferior to escitalopram (JAMA Psychiatry worry; buspirone an option; exclude medical, drug and 2023); Beers 2023 withdrawal causes Phobias Agoraphobia commonest; fear of falling is the geriatric- World Falls Guidelines — assess "concern about specific phobia, rare in the young; vicious cycle of activity falling" in every falls assessment restriction; graded exposure + CBT; avoid benzodiazepines OCD DSM-5 own chapter; new onset after 60 is organic (basal TMS approved for OCD; deep TMS (H7 coil) for ganglia, FTD); Y-BOCS; ERP first-line; SSRIs need higher dose refractory cases and 10–12 weeks Mood disorders DSM-5 split into depressive and bipolar; persistent depressive ISBD lithium 0.4–0.8 mEq/L (60–79 y), 0.4–0.7 (≥80 overall disorder ≥2 years; secondary mania; apathy is not y)

depression Psychosis, Therapeutics, Personality & Alcohol Late-life psychosis ~60% of new-onset psychosis in late life is secondary; the Xanomeline–trospium (KarXT), FDA 2024 — first six D's — delirium, disease, drugs, dementia, depression, muscarinic antipsychotic delusional disorder; treat the cause, correct sensory loss, then low-dose atypical Late-onset LOS 40–59 y, VLOSLP ≥60 y (late paraphrenia); female ATLAS — amisulpride 100 mg/day, the only schizophrenia predominance; deafness and isolation; partition delusions; placebo-controlled RCT in VLOSLP negative symptoms and thought disorder rare Atypical D2 + 5-HT2A; quarter to a third of adult dose; quetiapine in Brexpiprazole, FDA May 2023 — first drug antipsychotics DLB/PD; boxed warning of stroke and death in dementia; approved for agitation in Alzheimer's dementia monitor weight, glucose, lipids, QTc, EPS; review every 3 months ECT >50% of recipients are older adults; first-line if severe, ELEKT-D 2023 — ketamine non-inferior in non-psychotic, catatonic, suicidal or not eating; efficacy psychotic TRD; ultrabrief right unilateral ECT undiminished by age but seizure threshold rises; older age predicts better response; reversible cognitive effects; no absolute contraindication CBT Structured, time-limited, 8–20 sessions; thought records, Digital and remote CBT effective in older adults; behavioural activation, graded exposure, homework; CBT-I first-line for chronic insomnia problem-solving therapy best where executive dysfunction; adapt for sensory and cognitive deficits Agitation — non-drug Almost all people with dementia become agitated; look first IPA consensus definition of agitation; 2023–25 for pain, infection, constipation, retention, network meta-analyses favour tailored activity, dehydration, drugs, delirium; DICE and ABC; tailored massage, animal-assisted intervention activity, music, massage, animal-assisted, light therapy; carer training Personality change Normal ageing = maturation, not rigidity; traits are ICD-11 — single dimensional diagnosis with accentuated under stress; new personality change in old severity + 5 trait domains; "personality change age is organic until proved otherwise — FTD is the due to another medical condition" retained prototype; drugs do not help separately Diogenes syndrome Tetrad — extreme self-neglect, domestic squalor, social Hoarding disorder now a distinct DSM-5/ICD-11 withdrawal, refusal of help, with hoarding and no shame; half diagnosis; specialised CBT, not forced clearance are primary; premorbid paranoid/schizoid/OC traits; home visit essential; ~45% five-year mortality Alcoholism in the Early-onset "survivors" two-thirds vs late-onset "reactors" WHO 2023 — no safe level; US Surgeon General elderly one-third; reduced body water and hepatic metabolism → 2025 — alcohol the third leading preventable higher levels; CAGE and SMAST-G; inpatient detox with cause of cancer lorazepam and thiamine; non-confrontational programmes double abstinence OP poisoning essay DUMBBELS; decontaminate and protect staff; atropine by AHA 2023 poisoning guidelines; India NSPS 2022 — dose doubling to clear chest, dry axillae, HR >80; pesticide restriction as the leading pillar pralidoxime early (benefit debated); watch intermediate syndrome at 24–96 h and OPIDN at 2–3 weeks; psychiatric assessment before discharge Cross-Cutting Themes the Examiner Rewards

1.

"Organic until proved otherwise" — applies to late-onset psychosis, late-onset mania, new personality change, and new somatoform presentation. Write it every time.

2.

"Start low, go slow" plus explicit numbers — antipsychotics at ¼–⅓ adult dose, mood stabilisers 30–50% lower, lithium 0.4–0.8 mEq/L.

3.

Non-pharmacological measures come first — sensory correction, reducing isolation, CBT, psychoeducation, carer support.

4.

Deprescribing is treatment — benzodiazepines, anticholinergics, opioids; cite Beers and STOPP/START.

5.

Indian context in every answer — MHCA 2017, NPHCE, AB-PMJAY / Vay Vandana, Tele-MANAS 14416, Elder Line 14567, MWPSC Act 2007, NTCP quitline 1800-11-2356, LASI data. Five Lines That Earn Marks in Every Answer in This Module

1.

"Asking about suicide does not increase risk — most patients are relieved and it strengthens trust."

2.

"Antidepressants are just as effective in older people as in younger adults" — tolerability, not efficacy, drives drug choice.

3.

"ECT is not a last resort — it is first-line in severe, psychotic, catatonic or acutely suicidal depression, and older age predicts a better response."

4.

"Benzodiazepines: short-acting, short-term, and only for incapacitating symptoms" — cognitive impairment, falls and fractures otherwise.

5.

"New-onset mania, OCD or personality change in old age is organic until proved otherwise." Cross-Module Differentiation Grid — How the Overlapping Questions Differ Question Pivot point — what the answer must emphasise Q1 — Depression, full essay Prevalence figures → atypical presentation → subtypes → management → ECT as a dedicated section Q2 — Treatment and management Stepped-care model, psychotherapy vs drugs, resistant depression pathway, duration of maintenance Q3 — Antidepressant medication Pure pharmacology — class-by-class, adverse effects, contraindications, augmentation, tapering Q4 — Clinical vignette Safety first → exclude organic cause of weight loss → drug table with side effects → structured follow-up schedule Q10 — Mood disorders in late life Classification and the whole spectrum — depressive + bipolar + secondary/organic + apathy and mimics Six Lines That Earn Marks Across This Whole Module

1.

"About 60% of new-onset psychosis in late life is secondary — primary psychosis is a diagnosis of exclusion."

2.

"Atypical antipsychotics are preferred over conventional agents — but all carry a boxed warning of increased stroke and death in dementia, and no drug is approved for the neuropsychiatric symptoms of dementia."

3.

"ECT is not a last resort — older age predicts a better response, and its efficacy does not diminish with age."

4.

"For agitation, look for pain, infection, constipation and drugs before reaching for any prescription."

5.

"A personality change that begins in old age is organic until proved otherwise."

6.

"In organophosphate poisoning, the endpoint of atropinisation is a clear chest and dry axillae — not the pupils."

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