[Risk factors associated with the consumption of antidepressant agents]

To find the profile of the consumer of anti-depressants, identify risk factors and calculate the prevalence of the under-diagnosis of depression in our milieu.

Case-control study.

Gavà II Health Centre, Barcelona.

The study covered 134 consumers of anti-depressants and 274 controls with no treatment (one group from the Centre, the other from the community) paired for sex, age and general practitioner. The Zung-Conde self-applied depression) scale was administered.

88% of those surveyed were women, with an average age of 50. The prescribing doctor was, in 55% of cases, their general practitioner. The anti-depressants prescribed were mainly (70.9%) from the group of selective inhibitors of serotonin uptake. There were more divorced and widowed people among the cases (p < 0.05). The pathology most often associated with the cases was digestive (31%, p < 0.02). 63% of cases had suffered some event they thought important in the 6 months before prescription. Average score on the Zung test was 51.5% in the cases, and 40% in the controls (p < 0.0001). Using 50 on the Zung scale as the cut-off point, we classified 56% of the cases and 17% of the controls as depressed.

The profile of the consumer of anti-depressants is a women of about 50, living as one of a couple, house-wife, with primary education only, and medium to low social and economic level. The prevalence in the controls of depressive illness neither detected nor treated is similar to that found in other studies. We need to find some instrument to measure attitude, in order to reduce the number of patients who are underdiagnosed in the consulting room.