Patterns of psychotropic drug use.

This paper brings together data, obtained from a variety of sources, on the extent of prescription and use of psychotropic drugs in the late 1960s and early 1970s. National prescribing data show that there was a marked increase in the number of prescriptions, and general practice based surveys reveal an increase in the proportion of the population receiving a prescription for a psychotropic drug. Community based surveys, however, show that there was no increase in the proportion of the population who admitted to consuming a psychotropic drug. Analysis of previously published data reveal that this discrepancy is accounted for by two factors: (a) a decrease in compliance and (b) an increase in the average duration of treatment with psychotropic drugs. The implication of these findings are discussed.