Posted by Racer on July 4, 2005, at 12:59:10
In reply to Re: OK, does anyone else get annoyed when............., posted by willyee on July 3, 2005, at 16:22:52
> > ..........you read those articles that mutter on about how horrendously dangerous the MAOIs were are how brilliant and safe the SSRIs are???
> >
> > .......and how the TCAs were so awful because they were cardio-toxic in overdose but we don't need to worry about that anymore now do we blah blah blah........
> >
> > ~Ed
> >
> > PS. Just in case you can't tell, I don't think MAOIs are 'horrendously dangerous' LOL.
>
> Well ur missing the BIG picture,if the docs dont prescribe these meds,then the sales people wont come around,and they wont get all those cute little pens,pada,tissue boxes,calenders,and other goodies.
>
> When was the last time you saw a nardil or parnate pen?
>
>
I don't think that's it. First of all, having worked in places where those things came through the door a lot, we didn't care a fig what the pens said on them -- except that some of those pens only wrote for a few days, or didn't write well at all -- we bought the things we bought based on our needs and our assessment of quality. Nothing to do with the freebies.I do think that there is a real phenomenon about newer drugs being prescribed more often, though. For one thing, the biggest changes that have happened in the past fifty years or so with anti-depressants is that each generation of drugs has fewer and milder adverse effects. We may not notice that as much, but overall, it's true. The doctors are prescribing those drugs with fewer adverse effects, which are the newer drugs.*
Also, the studies they're reading in the journals are more often about the newer drugs, the CME exercises refer to newer drugs, and so on. They have more recent knowledge of the newer drugs, so those drugs come to mind more easily. Thus, you get a lot more doctors prescribing what they think of first.
What's more, while most of us see psychiatrists for our psychotropic medications, the vast majority of those taking anti-depressants get them from primary care physicians. Guess what? They're *really* going to lean towards the SSRIs, because they know they don't have the experience or expertise to prescribe TCAs, let alone MAOIs.
*One reason those studies keep showing the new drugs to be more benign than the older drugs is that the studies are so short. In six weeks on Prozac, for example, most of the adjustment phase effects are gone, but the longer term effects haven't started up yet. Quel surprise! No wonder they look so friendly.
poster:Racer
thread:522842
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20050702/msgs/523299.html