Consumption of Psychiatric Drugs in Primary Care during the COVID-19 Pandemic

González-López, María del Carmen; Díaz-Calvo, Virginia; Ruíz-González, Carlos; Nievas-Soriano, Bruno José; Rebollo-Lavado, Belén; Carreño, Tesifón Parrón

doi:10.3390/ijerph19084782

Cited by 20 publications

(23 citation statements)

References 15 publications

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“…Regarding age, consumption is higher for older age groups. These results are similar to those reported on a study by Gonzalez-Lopez 25 , with data from another Spanish region, Andalusia.…”

Section: Discusionsupporting

confidence: 92%

“…Several hypothesis that can explain the higher consumption rates for women can be found in the literature, ranging from hormonal differences in life course (menstruation, pregnancy, menopause…), more medical consultations 26 , to gender inequalities regarding the double working shift, and their role of caregivers, which would translate into more psychological stress and explain higher prevalence of anxiety, depression, and sleep and eating disorders in women. 8,25 Our results, as in several studies 25,27 , show psychotropic consumption increases with age in both genders. A plausible explanation for this would be chronic disease and comorbidities that come with aging, alongside cognitive decline.…”

Section: Discusionsupporting

confidence: 89%

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Psychotropic Consumption Before and During Covid-19 in Asturias, Spain

García

Martínez²,

Bretón³

et al. 2022

Preprint

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BACKGROUND: Spain as multiple other countries, has been experiencing an increasing and sustained trend in the use of psychotropic medications since the mid 90s. Recent studies show public health measures implemented to control SARS-Cov2, such as mobility restrictions and the shutdown of nonessential activities increased mental suffering, even contributing to a higher number of anxiety, depression and insomnia disorders that could lead to an increase in the consumption of psychotropics. The aims were: 1) Evaluate the temporal trend in psychotropic consumption by therapeutic subgroup, sex, and age group 2) Estimate the effect of the COVID-19 pandemic in the use of psychotropic drugs.METHODS: We conducted a retrospective observational study, retrieving all prescriptions of anxiolytics, hypnotics/sedatives, and antidepressants dispensed in pharmacies of Asturias (Northern Spain) for Primary Care patients for the period 2018-2021.We presented the data expressed in Daily Defined Doses (DDDs) for 1000 persons/day (DHD). To estimate changes in DHDs by year and age group we conducted 2 multiple linear regressions (one for males and one for females) for every therapeutic subgroup studied. Changes were considered statistically significant when the regression coefficient was p<0.05. We used the Software R 4.1.0.RESULTS:For the studied period, the highest DHDs are for antidepressants, although all of the subgroups experienced an increase in consumption rates.Women consumed more psychotropic drugs than men. In 2021, 372 out of every 1,000 women were taking daily 1 DDD of these drugs versus 184 out of every 1,000 men. Consumption rates for all psychotropic drugs progressively increases with age. Conversely, the biggest increases in consumption were among the youngest age groups (0-14 years, 43.2% increase and 15-29 years, 35.1% increase).The regression models suggest an upward trend in psychotropic consumption during all the period, especially remarkable from 2020, for both genders and all age groups. CONCLUSIONS:-The growing and sustained trend in consumption of psychotropic drugs for the recent years has increased since the start of the SARS-COV2 pandemic for both sexes, especially from 2020 onwards. This trend is consistent with the observed national one.-The increase observed on children and adolescents is a matter of concern.

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“…Regarding age, consumption is higher for older age groups. These results are similar to those reported on a study by Gonzalez-Lopez 25 , with data from another Spanish region, Andalusia.…”

Section: Discusionsupporting

confidence: 92%

Section: Discusionsupporting

confidence: 89%

Psychotropic Consumption Before and During Covid-19 in Asturias, Spain

García

Martínez²,

Bretón³

et al. 2022

Preprint

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“…We found that 44.9% of long-COVID-19 subjects in have used BZD and Z-hypnotics, with women showing higher percentages. Benzodiazepine and Z-hypnotics use in the general population has significantly increased in Spain during the COVID-19 pandemic, with values ranging from 6.3 to 7.9% for anxiolytics, and 4.8% for hypnotic-Sedatives ( 22 , 23 ). Data from the Spanish Agency of Medicine and Health Products ( Agencia Española de Medicamentos y Productos Sanitarios , AEMPS) in a report on the use of anxiolytic and hypnotic drugs in Spain showed consumption increasing from 90.60 defined daily dose/1,000 inhabitants per day (DHD) in 2019 to 93.04 DHD in 2020 ( 24 ).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…This effect was not observed in women with long-COVID-19. Different researches performed during the pandemic have demonstrated that psychotropic drug consumption rises with age, particularly after 65, in both men and women ( 15 , 16 , 23 ). One possible explanation for our results is that long-COVID-19 subjects in our study was a young population, with only 19% of the sample older than 55.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Benzodiazepines and Z-hypnotics consumption in long-COVID-19 patients: Gender differences and associated factors

Carrasco‐Garrido

Fernández‐de‐las‐Peñas

Hernández‐Barrera

et al. 2022

Front. Med.

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BackgroundPsychotropic drug consumption has increased during the COVID-19 pandemic. We describe here the prevalence and identifying factors associated with Benzodiazepine (BZD) and Z-hypnotics use among a sample of Spanish adults suffering from long-COVID-19 syndrome, from a gender perspective.Materials and methodsData were anonymously collected between 15th December 2021 and 15th March 2022. The collection form consisted of several questions gathering sociodemographic information, post-COVID symptom, health profile, and pharmacological drug intake. Using logistic multivariate regression models, we estimated the independent effect of each of these variables on self-medicated consumption. Three models were generated (female, male, and both gender).ResultsPrevalence of BZD and Z-hypnotics use was 44.9% (46.5% for women; 37.8% for men). Zolpidem was the most consumed drug among male (20.7%), and lorazepam in female (31.1%). Patterns of drug consumption among female were related with number of post-COVID symptoms and smoking habit (AOR 2.76, 95%CI 1.16–6.52). Males under 40 years of age are more likely to consume BZD and Z-hypnotics (AOR 5.52, 95%CI 1.08–28.27).ConclusionThe prevalence of consumption of BZD and Z-hypnotics in those subjects with long-COVID-19 in our study reaches values of 44.9%. Women with long-COVID-19 declare a higher prevalence of consumption than men. Predictors of BZD and Z-hypnotic in men were, age and number of medication use. Smoking habit and the number of post-COVID symptoms were predictive variables in women.

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“…In addition, it has been shown that before the COVID-19 outbreak, being of student age was associated with the highest frequency of stimulants use [ 9 , 10 ]. Moreover, the use of, for example, sedatives—such as antidepressants, anxiolytics and hypnotic-sedatives—has increased due to pandemic-related mental distress [ 11 ]. Interestingly, the consumption aspect needs to be considered bearing in mind that sedatives are taken disparately in various areas, which generally reflects the problem with the usage of drugs overall [ 12 , 13 ].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Use of Alcohol, Cannabinoids, Psychostimulants, and Sedatives before and during the COVID-19 Pandemic among Students in 40 European Countries

Babicki

2022

IJERPH

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In March 2020, the WHO announced the COVID-19 pandemic, which has been ongoing for over 2 years. To stop the spread of the virus, the governments of many countries decided to introduce reasonable social restrictions that were suitable for pandemic waves. This led to radical changes in people’s lives, especially among students, who are very active in society. Before COVID-19, being of student age was associated with the highest frequency of stimulants use. It is important to note that drugs are taken disparately in various areas. Therefore, using the Computer-Assisted Web Interview type of study, the impact of the pandemic on the use of alcohol, cannabinoids, psychostimulants (e.g., amphetamine, methamphetamine, ecstasy) and sedatives (e.g., zolpidem, zopiclone, alprazolam, lorazepam, etc.) was assessed among students from European countries. The questionnaire included single- and multiple-answer questions. The first part concerned sociodemographic questions, while the second included questions about the use of stimulants in the last 3 months prior to participation in the study. Distribution of the survey covered the period from 31 January 2016 to 30 April 2021. A total of 17,594 European students participated in the study. The vast majority of participants were women (80.4%) and students of non-medical universities (77.2%) living in Eastern European countries (86.1%). Of all students, 15,613 (89.6%) reported alcohol drinking, 2538 (14.1%) the use of cannabinoids, 650 (3.6%) psychostimulants, and 2252 (12.5%) sedatives in the past three months. It has been shown that women are far less likely to use alcohol (OR 0.81), psychostimulants (OR 0.44) and cannabinoids (OR 0.49), while they are more likely to use sedatives (OR 1.41). During the COVID-19 pandemic, the consumption of alcohol (OR 0.55) and psychostimulants (OR 0.72) decreased and that of sleep medications increased (OR 1.17). To conclude, the COVID-19 pandemic influenced the pattern of stimulants used by students in European countries. The restriction of social interactions contributed to the decrease in the consumption of alcohol and psychostimulants but increased the use of sedatives and the frequency of their use. Women were found to use sedatives more often, while men preferred to drink alcohol and use cannabinoids or psychostimulants. It has also been shown that students of Central and Eastern Europe more often use alcohol and sedatives, while in Southern European countries psychostimulants and cannabinoids are preferred.

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Consumption of Psychiatric Drugs in Primary Care during the COVID-19 Pandemic

Cited by 20 publications

References 15 publications

Psychotropic Consumption Before and During Covid-19 in Asturias, Spain

Psychotropic Consumption Before and During Covid-19 in Asturias, Spain

Benzodiazepines and Z-hypnotics consumption in long-COVID-19 patients: Gender differences and associated factors

Use of Alcohol, Cannabinoids, Psychostimulants, and Sedatives before and during the COVID-19 Pandemic among Students in 40 European Countries

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