Doctors complain of poor training in depression diagnosis

Nine of 10 young primary care physicians believe medical school training about depression - specifically regarding its painful physical symptoms - needs to be improved, according to findings from a multi-national survey released in Paris, France and sponsored by US drug major Eli Lilly and Germany's Boehringer Ingelheim.

Of the 500 PCPs surveyed across five countries - Brazil, France, Germany, Mexico and the UK - about one third felt medical school prepared them to diagnose depression on a patient's first visit (35%) or prepared them to treat all symptoms of depression, emotional and physical, to complete remission (31%). The PCPs interviewed had all been in clinical practice for three to five years.

Nearly three quarters (73%) of PCPs said their training did teach the importance of considering both the emotional and painful physical symptoms of depression and half (51%) said they were taught that depressed patients often present primarily with painful physical symptoms. However, the PCPs displayed some knowledge gaps and misperceptions about the role of painful physical symptoms in diagnosis and treatment. When asked what five depression symptoms came to mind, for example, only one third or fewer PCPs named painful physical symptoms, and less than one-third (27%) believe pain is a symptom of depression always or most of the time.