Asociation of antidepressants prescription, diagnosis of depression and suicide rate: an ecological study
Abstract
Background: The association of suicide rate with antidepressant prescription and depressive symptomatology at the group-level remains in spite of intensive research unclear. The aim of the study was investigation of the associations between them using data in 2009-2013 obtained from the General Health Insurance Company of the Czech Republic, Regional Office for Prague and the Central Bohemian Region.
Method: Data were analyzed using an autoregressive model AR(1) Prais-Winsten estimation. Results: Prescription of antidepressant N06AA was statistically significantly negatively, and antidepressants N06AB, N06AX and diagnose F31 positively associated with diagnose X60 (Injury & poisoning) and X70 (Intentional self-harm).
Study limitation: The study is an exploratory and ecological one, so causality cannot be inferred. Predictors were not adjusted, many several protective and risk factors were not taken into account, and the results are based on the regional data.