A high use of psychotropic drugs is observed in older adults living in nursing homes owing to the high prevalence of behavioral and psychological symptoms of dementia.

A relative increase in the prescription of psychotropic drugs in the pandemic period indicates a possible negative effect of emotional and behavioural disorders due to restrictive measures used to prevent infection.

Differences in the pattern of psychotropic drug prescription in the coronavirus disease 2019 period suggest that the effects of the pandemic are not identical in persons living in geriatric units or psychogeriatric units, thus requiring different protocols of pharmaceutical intervention.