A cross-sectional study on behavioral health, usage of prescription patterns, and cost analysis of antidepressant medications in alcohol dependence syndrome at a tertiary care hospital in Bangalore, Karnataka, India

• Author Details:   
• Animesh Das ^*
• Ritwam Mukhopadhyay
• Satheesh E Kumar
• Padma L Gopinath
• Vibha Manu MD

---

View PDF

Background: People with Alcohol Dependence Syndrome (ADS) have difficulty stopping alcohol use. Stress is a common reason for drinking, which can lead to physical, emotional, and relationship problems. Alcohol also affects brain function and sexual health. Having a family history of alcohol use increases the risk. Treatment involves counseling, support, and medicines, although some medicines may also cause dependence.

Materials and Methods: A cross-sectional study was carried out over a period of six months. This study was conducted on 210 inpatients at the psychiatric department of a tertiary care hospital in Bangalore. Data were collected using a customised form, capturing patient demographics, clinical details, and prescription information. They looked at health habits, medicine use, and the cost of antidepressants in people who had alcohol problems. Drug interactions were analysed using Lexicomp software, and Microsoft excel was utilized for statistical analysis. Patients aged 15 and above with full details were included; others were not.

Result: This study looked at 210 patients. Most were men (206 or 98.09%) and unmarried (176 or 83.8%). The largest age group was 38–47 years (46.66%), followed by 28–37 years (32.85%). The main risk factors were tobacco use (87 patients or 50%) and smoking (67 or 38.5%). Many patients had a medical history (138 or 65.71%) and family history (139 or 66.19%) of illness, mainly diabetes (26%) and high blood pressure (24%). Alcohol use was highest among people drinking for 6–10 years (28.8%) and 16–20 years (20.47%). Most patients had a Mental State Examination (75.84%) and some had Eye-to-Eye Contact Therapy (24.15%). The most common alcohol dependence was Type 1 and mild (44.28%). On admission, the most used medicines were Diazepam tablets (23.79%) and Lorazepam tablets (23.1%). During treatment, vitamins (13.31%) and Baclofen (13.58%) were most used. Each prescription had about 8.72 medicines, and 92.38% of patients got both tablets and injections. On average, each prescription had 2.2 antibiotics. Out of 1832 medicines, 1330 (72.59%) were brand-name and 502 (27.4%) were generic. Vitamins and iron were in 90.47% of prescriptions. There were 160 drug interactions, mostly moderate, with Lorazepam and Risperidone being the most common (17.5%). At discharge, Baclofen 20 mg (13.58%) and Methylcobalamin 2000 mg (11.41%) were most used. The cost of treatment showed a clear difference between brand and generic drugs. The most used group was benzodiazepines (492 medicines), and anti-depression medicines (sertraline, amitriptyline, clonazepam, etc.) had a big cost difference.

Conclusion: This study shows many ADS patients have depression. Doctors mostly use affordable antidepressants. Better mental health care is needed.