Queensland has recorded a sharp increase in antidepressant use, possibly linked to COVID-19.

Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme data shows that use of the most commonly prescribed antidepressant drugs rose by 10 per cent between January and May this year.

Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) were dispensed over 378,000 times at Queensland pharmacies over the five months — 34,000 more than in the same period last year.

The Australian Medical Association (AMA) of Queensland says GPs are reporting a rise too.

AMA spokesperson Dr Michael Clements says the spike in use could be attributed to the COVID-19 pandemic.

“The financial stress, the homeschooling, worrying about whether you had a job or, as a business owner, whether you could pay your staff,” he said.

“There's an awful lot of reason to be stressed at the moment.

“Some of my patients who've come to see me had not experienced a depressive illness for some years and had been off tablets for some years, but they recognised with the increased stress of COVID they could see some of those symptoms coming back.”

Psychiatrist Dhushan Illesinghe says a wave of new mental health diagnoses is coming.

“We can expect from our experience that there is likely to be an exacerbation of symptoms as well as people who present with symptoms for the first time after this,” Dr Illesinghe said.

“Judging from other natural disasters, the psychological presentations can take three to six months.”