Prescription Pattern of Antidepressant Drugs in Patients With Depression at a Tertiary Care Teaching Hospital: A Cross-Sectional Drug Utilization Study

Abstract

Background: Depression is one of the leading causes of disability worldwide and contributessubstantially to impaired quality of life, reduced productivity, increased healthcare utilization, andsuicide risk. Antidepressants remain the cornerstone of management; however, irrational prescribingpractices such as polypharmacy, prolonged benzodiazepine use, unnecessary fixed-dose combinations(FDCs), low generic prescribing, and inadequate adherence to treatment guidelines continue to beimportant concerns in psychiatric practice. Drug utilization studies are useful tools for evaluatingprescribing trends, assessing rationality of prescriptions, andpromoting evidence-based use ofpsychotropic medications.