[Antidepressive treatment in general practice--an interview study]

In order to elucidate potential problems concerning the use of antidepressants in general practice, 98 randomly selected antidepressant users from 12 general practices were interviewed. The primary indication for antidepressant treatment was depression (72 patients), partly regular depression (therapeutic/prophylactic treatment) (n = 39), partly depressive tendencies (n = 32) (one patient no information). Median treatment duration was three years; 25% had been in treatment for more than 10 years. The general practitioners judged the treatment problematic/unacceptable in 23 cases, largely because of uncertain indication or because other or no treatment was considered better for the patient. Side effects were modest. The patients often had a relatively high depression score and poor status according to the WONCA-scale. The use of low doses, long duration of treatment, and uncertainty about the relevance of the treatment are important features in the use of antidepressants by general practitioners. The use of antidepressants in general practice differs from the scientifically-based recommendations.