Prevalence, correlates, and disease patterns of antidepressant use in Taiwan.

OBJECTIVE

We used the population-based National Health Insurance database to investigate the prevalence, correlates, and disease patterns of antidepressant use in Taiwan.

METHODS

The National Health Research Institutes provided a database of 200,000 random subjects for study. We obtained a random sample of 145,304 subjects 18 years or older in 2004. Study subjects who had been given at least 1 antidepressant drug prescription during this year were identified. We detected factors associated with any antidepressant use. We also examined the proportion of antidepressant use for psychiatric and medical disorders.

RESULTS

The 1-year prevalence of antidepressant use was 4.3%. Higher antidepressant use was found in the aged group, in female subjects, in individuals with a fixed premium and with an insurance amount lower than US $640, in individuals with disability, and among subjects in the central area. Among subjects with antidepressant use, the higher proportions of psychiatric disorders were for neurotic depression (21.1%), anxiety state (17.6%), major depressive disorder (14.6%), special symptoms or syndromes not elsewhere classified (8.5%), and depressive disorder not elsewhere classified (5.4%). With respect to medical disorders, the higher proportions of antidepressant use were for diseases of the genitourinary system; musculoskeletal system and connective tissue; symptoms, signs, and ill-defined conditions; circulatory system; endocrine, nutritional, and metabolic diseases and immunity disorders; and nervous system and sense organs.

CONCLUSION

Higher proportion of psychiatric disorders among subjects with antidepressant use were for depressive disorder and anxiety disorder. However, 39% of the subjects were using antidepressants for nonpsychiatric disorders in Taiwan.