Many people who struggle with mental illnesses are able to live normal lives with help from antidepressants. This class of medication has been considered an invaluable advancement in the treatment of such conditions. However, a new study finds that many people who have no psychiatric diagnosis are taking the medication inappropriately as part of misguided personal change models.
Researchers form Johns Hopkins University analyzed national prescribing trends from data collected between 1996 and 2007. The results showed that 72 percent of those given a prescription for antidepressants in 2007 had no diagnosed psychiatric condition. This was an increase compared to earlier in the study, when just 59 percent of antidepressant patients had no diagnosis.
The team said that non-specialists are coming to play a larger role in the treatment of mental disorders like depression. While this can have positive effects on treatment access, it can also result in the prescribing of inappropriate treatments.
"To the extent that antidepressants are being prescribed for uses not supported by clinical evidence, there may be a need to improve providers' prescribing practices, revamp drug formularies or undertake broad reforms of the health care system that will increase communication between primary care providers and mental health specialists," said Ramin Mojtabai, who led the study.
Furthermore, individuals who do not expressly need to take antidepressants for accurately diagnosed mental disorders may want to seek other methods of personal change management. Author and philosopher Ilchi Lee recommends meditation and yoga for many types of conditions that are poorly understood by modern medicine.
Either way, individuals may want to talk to their doctors to make sure that the treatment they are on is appropriate.
