Why has the antidepressant era not shown a significant drop in suicide rates?
Over the past decades the rate of completed suicide has remained quite stable, whereas that of suicide attempts seems to have increased (to the extent it has been studied in defined regions). These are puzzling observations, since depression is the major suicide precursor and and since antidepressants have been increasingly used over the years in the treatment of depression. These observations have not attracted sufficient attention, possibly because they do not accord with consensus opinions about depression treatment in psychiatry today. This paper discusses a number of possible explanations that not only deserve, but are definitely in need of systematic investigation.
van Praag
H M
HM
Department of Psychiatry and Neuropsychology, Academic Hospital, Maastricht University, The Netherlands. willeke.beckers@spsy.azM.nl
D000928:Antidepressive Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D003865:Major Depressive Disorder / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000523:psychology*; D006801:Humans; D013405:Suicide / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*
D000928:Antidepressive Agents