Abstract
Introduction: Antidepressants play a major role in managing depression and other conditions. The use of various classes of antidepressants varies from a country to another but information about the use of these agents in the developing countries is scarce. Results: A total number of 1416 prescriptions were analyzed. Of these 880 (62.1%) were for females and 536 (37.9%) were for males. Tricyclic antidepressant (TCAs), selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs), serotonin/ norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors (SNRIs) and mirtazapine accounted for 34.6%, 32.1%, 13.3% and 19.9% of prescriptions, respectively. Monotherapy accounted for 89.3% of prescriptions. The most used single antidepressant drug was amitriptyline (28.5%) followed by mirtazapine (19.9%) and paroxetine (17.9%). SSRIs, SNRIs and mirtazapine were mainly used for psychiatric conditions in 82.2%, 73.0% and 68.8% of the cases, respectively, while TCAs were mainly indicated (63.7%) for non-psychiatric conditions. Conclusion: Monotherapy antidepressant is the preferred mode of therapy with SSRIs and mirtazapine as first line therapy for depression which is consistent with therapeutic guidelines recommendations.
Highlights
Antidepressants play a major role in managing depression and other conditions
Norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors (SNRIs) and mirtazapine accounted for 34.6%, 32.1%, 13.3% and 19.9% of prescriptions, respectively
selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs), SNRIs and mirtazapine were mainly used for psychiatric conditions in 82.2%, 73.0% and 68.8% of the cases, respectively, while
Summary
Antidepressants play a major role in managing depression and other conditions. The use of various classes of antidepressants varies from a country to another but information about the use of these agents in the developing countries is scarce. List depression as the fourth leading cause of disability overtaking chronic diseases such as hypertension and diabetes [3] It is considered as the leading cause of premature death and disability among people from 18-60 years of age [4]. The health risks associated with depression demand cost-effective therapies In this regards, antidepressant drugs considered the first line and the most widely used form of therapy for depression [5]. Antidepressant drugs have undergone remarkable evolution since their discovery in 1950s This evolution has lead to a continues changes in their prescribing patterns where the conventional agents like tricyclic antidepressants (TCA), and monoamine oxidase inhibitors (MAOI), selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) being replaced by newer antidepressants like serotonin/
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