Antidepressants for Elderly People

Elderly patients are major consumers of antidepressant drugs, yet this subject is under-researched. The elderly are particularly sensitive to the adverse affects of psychotrophic drugs, and they are often given a variety of drugs simultaneously. It is therefore vital that doctors should be well informed about this subject. The aim of this book is to provide comprehensive guidance on the drug therapy for depression in old age to the clinicians involved in the health care of elderly people. The book starts be discussing the epidemiology, presentations and assessments of depression in old age. The main part of the book deals with problems of antidepressant drug therapy, such as which antidepressant to prescribe, how to monitor side effects, what is the adequate dose, how long to treat a single episode of depression and who requires long-term medication. This book should be useful reading for all doctors who care for elderly people. This book should be of interest to general physicians, psychiatrists, psychopharmacologists and physicians in geriatric medicine.