Abstract
Background There is paucity of data on prevalence of Adverse Drug Reactions (ADRs) and adherence and clinical outcomes of antidepressants. The present study determined the magnitude of ADRs of antidepressants and their impact on the level of adherence and clinical outcome. Methods A prospective cross-sectional study was conducted among depression patients from September 2016 to January 2017 at Gondar University Hospital psychiatry clinic. The Naranjo ADR probability scale was employed to assess the ADRs. The rate of medication adherence was determined using Morisky Medication Adherence Measurement Scale-Eight. Results Two hundred seventeen patients participated in the study, more than half of them being males (122; 56.2%). More than one-half of the subjects had low adherence to their medications (124; 57.1%) and about 186 (85.7%) of the patients encountered ADR. The most common ADR was weight gain (29; 13.2%). More than one-half (125; 57.6%) of the respondents showed improved clinical outcome. Optimal level of medication adherence decreased the likelihood of poor clinical outcome by 56.8%. Conclusion ADRs were more prevalent. However, adherence to medications was very poor in the setup. Long duration of depression negatively affects the rate of adherence. In addition, adherence was found to influence the clinical outcome of depression patients.
Highlights
Major Depression (MD) is the most common mental health problem in the world
This study has found that Adverse Drug Reaction (ADR) were more prevalent in Major Depressive Disorder (MDD) patients as above eighty percent of the respondents reported ADRs
The current study identified that patient reported ADRs were highly prevalent among MDD patients, weight gain being the most common
Summary
Major Depression (MD) is the most common mental health problem in the world. Life time prevalence of 16.2% million among adults has been reported in United States [1]. As to the mortality caused by depression, a population based study determined that the mortality rate of the disease was 3.5% [8]. Etiologies such as psychological, biological, and environmental factors contributed to its prevalence [9]. There is paucity of data on prevalence of Adverse Drug Reactions (ADRs) and adherence and clinical outcomes of antidepressants. The present study determined the magnitude of ADRs of antidepressants and their impact on the level of adherence and clinical outcome. More than one-half of the subjects had low adherence to their medications (124; 57.1%) and about 186 (85.7%) of the patients encountered ADR. Adherence was found to influence the clinical outcome of depression patients
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