Publication:

Observational study of drug use pattern in indoor patients suffering from major depression admitted in psychiatry department of tertiary care teaching hospital

Background Mental illness is associated with high levels of health service utilization and associated costs. India is among one of the countries with the highest number of people suffering from depression. The data on antidepressant drug utilization in India is sparse. Hence, we planned to analyse the drug use pattern in patients of major depression as per the WHO recommended indicators of drug use.

Methods This prospective observational study was done to analyze the prescription pattern of hospital psychiatrist in indoor major depression patients. All the patients admitted in psychiatry indoor patient department (I. P. D.) of Dr. D. Y. Patil Hospital, Navi Mumbai were included.

Results Data of 97 patients was analysed. 55.67% of the cases were from the age group 31-50 years. Total number of antidepressants prescribed was 102(36.82%). Out of antidepressant agents, Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors (SSRIs) were the most commonly prescribed drugs 70 (68.62%). The most commonly prescribed antidepressant was Sertraline in 35 (34.3%).

Conclusions The findings of our study were similar to those of other studies conducted to evaluate the use of antidepressants.