Centre for Policy on Ageing



An examination of the attitudes and practice of general practitioners in the diagnosis and treatment of depression in older people
Author(s)	Ian Rothera, Rob Jones, Catherine Gordon
Journal title	International Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry, vol 17, no 4, April 2002
Pages	pp 354-358
Keywords	Depression ; Diagnosis ; Drugs ; General practitioners ; Attitude ; Nottingham.
Annotation	Most depression in older people is managed in primary care settings, but can be difficult to diagnose and is often under-treated. The responses of 333 general practitioners (GPs) in 116 general practices within the Nottingham Health Authority to a series of attitude statements and clinical vignettes regarding antidepressant prescribing were assessed. Selective Serotonin Re-Uptake Inhibitors (SSRIs) are the preferred drugs in treating certain problematic cases of late-life depression. Although these results suggest a greater propensity of GPs to prescribe SSRIs, older GPs and those who had been in practice longer were more likely to prescribe tricyclic antidepressants. This latter group and those without previous psychiatric training may benefit from further training in diagnosing and treating late-life depression. (RH).
Accession Number	CPA-020520212 A
Classmark	ENR: LK7: LLD: QT6: DP: 8NTF
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...from the Ageinfo database published by Centre for Policy on Ageing.