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Welke overwegingen heeft de huisarts om antidepressiva voor te schrijven?

Volkers, A., Dijk, L. van, Jong, A. de, Bakker, D. de. Welke overwegingen heeft de huisarts om antidepressiva voor te schrijven? Huisarts en Wetenschap: 2006, 49(5), 239-244
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Introduction: During the last decade general practitioners (GPs) have prescribed antidepressants more frequently, which raises questions about the causes of the rise. We explored GPs’ reasons for prescribing antidepressants and what reasons GPs advance for choosing between SSRIs or TCAs. Method: Face-to-face interviews with 23 GPs and a written questionnaire distributed to 67 GPs in which GPs gave reasons for prescribing to their patients. Results: Reasons for prescribing antidepressants include clinical reasons, situational and social circumstances and the preference of the individual patient. However, clinical reasons of GPs clearly prevail when prescribing. GPs do not experience strong pressure from their patients. GPs prefer SSRIs because they believe that SSRIs are effective and have fewer side effects. Only a few GPs take the cost of antidepressants into account when prescribing.Conclusions: Self-reports show that GPs prescribe antidepressants in a reasoned way. This means that the increase in antidepressant prescription cannot solely be explained by alleging lax prescribing habits on the part of Dutch GPs.