Hostname: page-component-78c5997874-xbtfd Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-10T16:03:47.248Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Prescription Patterns in Adolescent Patients With Depressive Disorder at a Tertiary Care Centre in Singapore

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  01 August 2024

Tji Tjian Chee ,
Mark Ye Han Ngoh ,
Yew Ron Hoe ,
Crystal Xue Qi Chong  and
Pei Sheuan Vanessa Tan
Tji Tjian Chee*
Affiliation:
National University Hospital, Singapore, Singapore
Mark Ye Han Ngoh
Affiliation:
National University Hospital, Singapore, Singapore
Yew Ron Hoe
Affiliation:
National University Hospital, Singapore, Singapore
Crystal Xue Qi Chong
Affiliation:
National University Hospital, Singapore, Singapore
Pei Sheuan Vanessa Tan
Affiliation:
National University Hospital, Singapore, Singapore
*
*Presenting author.
Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

Core share and HTML view are not available for this content. However, as you have access to this content, a full PDF is available via the ‘Save PDF’ action button.
Aims

We aim to examine the prescription patterns of local psychiatrists for adolescent patients with depressive disorder, treated on an outpatient basis, as part of an integrated programme for management of mood disorders in adolescent patients (IPMDA) in Singapore.

Methods

An longitudinal cohort observational study was carried out at a psychiatry out-patient department in the National University Hospital of Singapore, as part of a specialised programme for the treatment of adolescents, aged 13 to 18, with depressive disorder. The data which were collected included information about age, gender, education, therapy provision and drug prescription included generic name and dosing.

Results

A total of 129 patients were included in the study. 81.7% (n = 105) were females and 18.3% (n = 24) were males. 72 (76.4% female, 23.6% male) patients were started on medications. All patients were initiated on a monotherapy regime of antidepressants.

The most commonly prescribed antidepressant was Fluoxetine (58.3%), followed by Sertraline (18.1%), Fluvoxamine (12.5%), Escitalopram (6.9%), Mirtazapine (2.8%) and Amitriptyline (1.4%).

Conclusion

Our findings revealed that current psychopharmacology practice for depressive disorder in Singapore generally follows the published Singaporean treatment guidelines, which is generally kept up to date with wider international recommendations.

The factor of pricing may affect the lower prescription of certain medications, such as Escitalopram, as it is more expensive than the other prescribed medications in the list.

Type
7 Psychopharmacology
Information
BJPsych Open , Volume 10 , Supplement S1: Abstracts from the RCPsych International Congress 2024, 17–20 June , June 2024 , pp. S294 - S295
Creative Commons
Creative Common License - CCCreative Common License - BY
This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution licence (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted re-use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
Copyright
Copyright © The Author(s), 2024. Published by Cambridge University Press on behalf of Royal College of Psychiatrists

Footnotes

Abstracts were reviewed by the RCPsych Academic Faculty rather than by the standard BJPsych Open peer review process and should not be quoted as peer-reviewed by BJPsych Open in any subsequent publication.

Submit a response

eLetters

No eLetters have been published for this article.