Psychotherapy initiation is associated with discontinuation of psychotropic medications without dose escalation: a ten-year real-world cohort study (2014-2024)

BackgroundIncreasing psychotropic prescribing has raised concerns about long-term safety and regimen complexity in mental health care. Although psychotherapy is an established treatment, its role in medication optimization and psychotropic medication reduction in real-world practice across patient subgroups remains insufficiently characterized.ObjectiveTo evaluate whether initiation of psychotherapy is associated with short-term changes in psychotropic medication exposure and regimen complexity,