Praktické lekárnictvo 2/2022

Drug-induced depression

Drug treatment plays a key role in modern medicine. Each use is associated with a number of benefits, but the fact that the patient may be harmed by the treatment cannot be overlooked. The spectrum of effects is as wide as the indication. Among the possible pitfalls of pharmacology include the risk of inducing mental difficulties, eg. a mood disorder. Depressive symptoms or depression itself are described, for example, with the administration of corticoids, antiparkinsonians, antivirals but also commonly used drugs such as beta-blockers, statins or opioid analgesics. It should be added that the development of depressive symptoms is not one of the various side effects of pharmacology and therefore that pharmacogenic induced depression is rare. Listing all potentially hazardous drugs is not possible and the article aims to describe those commonly used and best described.

Keywords: depression, depressive symptoms, corticoids, beta-blockers, statins, opioid analgesics, antiparkinsonian agents, anticonvulsants, interferons