The Existing Landscape of Depression: Review

Abstract

Introduction: Depression is a global health problem that has been increasing in recent years, but it is still underdiagnosed and it’s not taken seriously enough. For this reason, it is vital for health workers to know their correct diagnosis and treatment to prevent patients from reaching their worst outcome, which is suicide. Objective: To examine how these patients have been approached and managed, and the effectiveness of both pharmacological and non-pharmacological therapies, based on review articles from the last five years. Methodology: a total of 43 original and review articles, collected from the Cochrane Library, PubMed and Google Scholar databases, were searched for the term Depression. The documents were found in Spanish and English. Some articles were excluded due to lack of updated information and lack of relevance for our literature review. Results: there is a fundamental pillar for the treatment of depression, based on psychological therapies (primary and fundamental element), pharmacotherapy and, as a last line, electroconvulsive therapy. The drugs generally used are serotonin reuptake inhibitors and serotonin and noradrenaline reuptake inhibitors. There are other therapies such as acupuncture, music therapy, which have shown some benefit. Conclusions: throughout this time, it has been determined that current diagnostic modalities have made it possible to diagnose early and a greater number of people suffering from depression, starting with psychotherapy, and administering antidepressant drugs in the absence of response to psychotherapy. KEY WORDS: depression, dysthymia, psychotherapy, Serotonin Uptake Inhibitors, Serotonin and Norepinephrine Reuptake Inhibitors.