Depression
This chapter discusses the symptomatology, diagnosis, and classification of depression. It begins with a brief historical background on depression, tracing its origins to the classical term ‘melancholia’ that describes symptoms and signs now associated with modern concepts of the condition. It then considers the phenomenology of the modern experience of depression, its diagnosis in the operational scheme of ICD-10 (International Classification of Diseases, tenth edition), and current classificatory schemes. It looks at the symptoms needed to meet the criteria for ‘depressive episode’ in ICD-10, as well as clinical features of depression with ‘melancholic’ features or ‘somatic depression’ in ICD-10. It also presents an outline of the clinical assessment of an episode of depression before concluding with an overview of issues that need to be taken into account when addressing approaches to treatment, including cognitive behavioural therapy and the administration of antidepressants.