Antidepressant treatment of veterans with Parkinson's disease and depression: analysis of a national sample.
We examined the impact of comorbid Parkinson's disease (PD) on depression treatment. Using national Veterans Affairs (VA) databases, fiscal year 2002 data were examined for 283 273 elderly males seen for depression. We compared 2 matched depression groups, one with (N = 7868) and one without (N = 7868) PD. In the 12-month period following a depression-related clinic visit, PD and non-PD patients were equally likely to fill an antidepressant prescription (77.8% vs. 77.4%), most commonly for a selective serotonin re-uptake inhibitor (SSRI) (62.9% vs 62.6%). Depressed PD patients had slightly higher rates of newer non-SSRI use (20.6% vs 19.2%, P < .05) and lower rates of tricyclic antidepressant use (7.4% vs 8.9%, P < .001). The presence of a PD diagnosis appears to have little impact on the frequency and type of antidepressant treatment. Efforts to improve the care of depressed PD patients should focus instead on improving recognition, ensuring adequacy of treatment, and evaluating the efficacy of existing antidepressants.
Chen
Peijun
P
Division of Geriatric Psychiatry, Department of Psychiatry, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA. Peijun.chen@med.va.gov
Kales
Helen C
HC
Weintraub
Daniel
D
Blow
Frederic C
FC
Jiang
Lan
L
Mellow
Alan M
AM
D000367:Age Factors; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000928:Antidepressive Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D015897:Comorbidity; D003866:Depressive Disorder / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000453:epidemiology; D015577:Geriatric Assessment / Q000379:methods / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010300:Parkinson Disease / Q000453:epidemiology*; D017367:Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors / Q000627:therapeutic use; D016896:Treatment Outcome; D014481:United States; D014493:United States Department of Veterans Affairs / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D014728:Veterans / Q000523:psychology*
D000928:Antidepressive Agents; D017367:Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors
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