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Discontinuation of Antidepressant Medication Among Latinos in the USA

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Abstract

Despite recent growth in the variety of antidepressant medications available, many patients discontinue medication prematurely for reasons such as nonresponse, side effects, stigma, and miscommunication. Some analysts have suggested that Latinos may have higher antidepressant discontinuation rates than other US residents. This paper examines Latino antidepressant discontinuation, using data from a national probability survey of Latinos in the USA. In this sample, 8% of Latinos had taken an antidepressant in the preceding 12 months. Among those users, 33.3% had discontinued taking antidepressants at the time of interview, and 18.9% had done so without prior input from their physician. Even controlling for clinical and other variables, patients who reported good or excellent English proficiency were less likely to stop at all. Patients were also less likely to stop if they were older, married, had public or private insurance, or had made eight or more visits to a nonmedical therapist.

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Acknowledgments

The NLAAS data used in this analysis were provided by the Center for Multicultural Mental Health Research at the Cambridge Health Alliance. The project was supported by NIH Research Grant # U01 MH62209 funded by the National Institute of Mental Health as well as the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration Center for Mental Health Services (SAMHSA/CMHS) and the Office of Behavioral and Social Sciences Research (OBSSR).The authors thank Zhun Cao, Shan Gao, and Maria Torres for help with this research, and Bill Sribney and Norah Mulvaney-Day for helpful comments on an earlier draft.

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Correspondence to Dominic Hodgkin PhD.

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Hodgkin, D., Volpe-Vartanian, J. & Alegría, M. Discontinuation of Antidepressant Medication Among Latinos in the USA. J Behav Health Serv Res 34, 329–342 (2007). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11414-007-9070-6

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11414-007-9070-6

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