DEPRESSION IN PRIMARY CARE: PREVALENCE, DIAGNOSIS AND TREATMENT

Major depression is currently one of the most prevalent and most disabling mental disorders. A large number of people with depression seek treatment from primary care (PC) providers. We present a critical review of the literature focused on the prevalence, diagnosis and treatment of depression in PC, giving special emphasis to studies carried out in Spain. Results indicate that Spain's 12-month prevalence for depression in PC is between 9.6% and 20.2%. In addition, depression is highly comorbid with other physical and psychological conditions. In spite of its elevated prevalence, patients suffering from depression are often misdiagnosed and rarely receive minimally adequate treatment. This leads to higher drop-out and relapse rates together with an elevated cost burden. The need for scientifically-based treatments in PC is discussed, given the fact that they have shown higher efficacy rates when compared to treatment as usual and may help to reduce social and health-care costs.