To investigate characteristics of prehospital period of patients with depressive disorders and their influence on the level of social functioning.

After informed agreement 102 patients with depressive disorders (DD) for the first time admitted to the psychiatric hospital were examined with RDC of ICD-10. For the assesment of the level of social functioning Social Adaptation Self-evaluation Scale (Bosc M. et al., 1997) was used.

The average duration of DD before psychiatric examination was 19,1 months (up to 312 months). The average age was 43,8±11,5 years. Most patient had first depressive episode (61,8%), second 8,9%, third 2,9% and 4,9% had «double depression». The most part of the patients (61,8%) with DD saw their primary care (PC) doctors, 47,1% of them did it more than twice. The average number of visits to PC was 3,6 (up to 49), the average number of investigations was 2,4 (up to 8). The most part of visits to primary care (PC) fell at patients with heart complaints (р=0,02), the less part to patients with loss of energy (р=0,0007). More visits to PC were associated with low level of social functioning (r>-0,2, р<0,05). Low level of social functioning correlated with older age, duration and severity of depression, number of previous episodes and PC attendance.

In ddition to some clinical characteristics of depressive disorders the level of social functioning depends on PC visiting.