Emergency department visits for depression in the United States.
The authors used data from the 1997-2000 National Hospital Ambulatory Care Surveys to quantify and characterize visits to emergency departments for depression. Each year there were 580,000 visits associated with a primary diagnosis of depression. More than half of these visits resulted in admission to a hospital or another facility. Twelve percent of visits involved a self-inflicted injury. Antidepressants were offered during 18 percent of visits. Mental status examinations were given during 52 percent of visits. Overall, 81 percent of visits were by patients who had health insurance coverage.
Harman
Jeffrey S
JS
Department of Health Services Research, Management, and Policy, College of Public Health and Health Professions, the University of Florida, P.O. Box 100195, Gainesville, Florida 32611-0195, USA. jharman@phhp.ufl.edu
Scholle
Sarah H
SH
Edlund
Mark J
MJ
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000553:Ambulatory Care / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D000928:Antidepressive Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D003863:Depression / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000628:therapy*; D004637:Emergency Services, Psychiatric / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D014481:United States / Q000453:epidemiology
D000928:Antidepressive Agents