Efeitos adversos do uso de antidepressivos em idosos

Abstract

The depressive syndromes are among the most frequent psychiatric disorders in the elderly, and population elderly have shown a high prevalence of depression, comes to constitute itself into a public health problem. Antidepressants are effective in treating depression, including the elderly, but successful treatment depends on the type and severity of depression, relationships with other psychiatric disorders or clinics, the appropriate choice of antidepressant, its efficacy and adverse event profile of patient education and adherence to treatment. The management of adverse events in elderly patients using other medications or have other diseases, is the strong point in the choice of antidepressants. The choice of this subject is due to the increasing number of elderly who are suffering from depression in the area of coverage where I work and the consumption of antidepressants in combination with other drugs and also by concern about the adverse effects that may occur in the elderly. Only in Brazil, they represent 70% of the population in 2025, implying a higher rate of accidents and external spending. Conduct a review of the literature on the adverse effects of antidepressant use, its complications and consequences on the health of the elderly is the objective of the study. The methodology used was a literature review - type narrative. The search was conducted in books, journal articles, monographs, dissertations, theses and articles taken from the Internet, in electronic databases Medline, Lilacs and Scielo. The results were: antidepressants medications are considered effective, as are the mainstays of treatment of depression in the elderly, drugs are relatively safe and well managed given, respecting the limitations of its use in these patients as well as their contraindications clinical and pharmacological.