Patterns of Caffeine Use and Prescribed Medications in Psychiatric Inpatients

Two matched groups of inpatients ( N = 40) who had access only to caffeinated versus decaffeinated coffee on an acute psychiatric ward were compared using pre- and postchange measures. The two groups did not differ significantly on any of the psychological assessments or in medication use over the course of treatment, with the exception that patients given caffeinated coffee who received prescribed phenothiazines had significantly higher dosages than those in the groups given decaffeinated coffee.