Drug utilization pattern and adverse drug reactions in patients on antidepressants

Materials and Methods: The study was conducted in the psychiatry department of BIMS hospital, Belagavi. 598 prescriptions with antidepressants were collected in a specially designed pro forma containing demographic, disease, and drug data. [...]during their follow-up, ADRs if any were noted. Conclusions: There is a need for drug utilization studies to encourage rational and appropriate use of drugs. [...]there is a growing concern to monitor and analyze the ADRs or any drug interactions to antidepressant drug pattern use. DUS are an inexpensive tool for the evaluation of current prescribing patterns; therefore, this kind of studies is useful to suggest modifications to achieve rational and cost-effective therapeutic practices in health care. [...]the aim of this study is to assess the pattern of use of different classes of antidepressants and ADR. The cause of depression is mainly due to a combination of genetic, psychological, and environmental factors. [...]some of the risk factors are family history of the depression, lifestyle changes, substance abuse, chronic health conditions, and medications and may be partially improved or completely unchanged after the treatment with antidepressant medications.