Experts have condemned the commonplace prescribing of sedatives to people in the UK with dementia.
It comes as a three-year study published in The Lancet Neurology reports a doubling of the risk of early death in those on the drugs long-term.
As many as 100,000 people in UK care homes with dementia are routinely prescribed anti-psychotic drugs for aggressiveness or agitation.
Ministers said they were reviewing the use of the drugs in dementia care.
Current guidelines state that anti-psychotics can be given to patients who are severely agitated or violent for short periods of time.
However, figures suggest the drugs are overused and are given for an average of one to two years.
Warnings
The latest research is not the first time the dangers of anti-psychotics in dementia patients have been reported. more from BBC
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