Choosing antidepressant drugs in general practice

General practitioners provide most of the mental health care to patients with common forms of anxiety or depression. There is a range of mental health therapies available, both pharmacological and nonpharmacological. In order to individualize treatment, practitioners need to consider the range of choices now available.

To outline reasons for choosing between different antidepressant compounds in different clinical settings.

Newer antidepressant drugs, especially the selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors, now account for most of the antidepressant prescriptions written. Practitioners may find it useful to differentiate the severity and types of depressive disorders that patients commonly present with. Such differentiation may assist in the selection of appropriate second line choices or alternative first line choices in some situations.