PHARMACOECONOMICS OF ANTIDEPRESSANT DRUG OVERDOSE

Patients with severe depression are often at risk of suicide, and many antidepressant medications are used, either alone or in combination w ith other substances, to attempt suicide. Drug overdoses involving ant idepressants are known to result in significant medical costs to the h ealthcare system. The medical costs associated with an antidepressant drug overdose depend on the class and toxicity of the antidepressant a nd possible co-ingestants. Although selective serotonin (5-hydroxytryp tamine; 5-HT) reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) and other newer antidepressa nts are less toxic than older agents such as tricyclic antidepressants (TCAs) when taken alone in suicide attempts, when combined with alcoh ol (ethanol) and other medications, overdoses with SSRIs result in med ical treatment and costs that are comparable with those associated wit h overdoses involving TCAs and multiple co-ingestants. However, studie s indicate that overdoses involving single SSRIs have significantly lo wer medical costs compared with overdoses involving single TCAs. Compr ehensive, prospective pharmacoeconomic studies of the costs associated with antidepressant overdoses and more information on the costs assoc iated with outpatient care and lost productivity due to such overdoses are required.