Depression: Distress or Disease? Some Epidemiological Considerations

1985 ◽  
Vol 147 (6) ◽  
pp. 612-622 ◽  
Author(s):  
George W. Brown ◽  
Tom K. J. Craig ◽  
Tirril O. Harris

Surveys using clinical-type interviews have documented a high rate of depression among working-class women, and this is discussed in the light of a recent survey in an inner-city area. While women with caseness of depression contacting a psychiatrist did not differ in number of core depressive symptoms from those who did, they did in certain characteristics that would make them worrying for a general practitioner to deal with. It is concluded that there is a considerable overlap in the severity of depressive conditions between those seen by psychiatrists and those defined as cases in population surveys; any differences that do exist may relate more to the way symptoms are expressed than to the severity of the depressive disorder as such.

1992 ◽  
Vol 21 (2) ◽  
pp. 291-303 ◽  
Author(s):  
Susan E. Hughes

ABSTRACTFor many decades, women's speech has been seen as being very different from that used by men. Stereotyped as swearing less, using less slang, and as aiming for more standard speech style, women were judged according to their sex rather than other aspects of their lives, such as class and economic situation. With many critics now challenging these ideas, this article sets out to look at the reality of the swearing used by a group of women from a deprived inner-city area. Their constant use of strong expletives flies in the face of the theories proffered of the “correctness” of the language of women. (Expletives, taboo words, working-class women, female speech, female group, social networks, sociolinguistics, inner-city England)


1987 ◽  
Vol 35 (4) ◽  
pp. 703-720 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gail Wilson

This article surveys the role of grandparents in providing a continuing level of material support in 61 households with dependent children in an inner city area. It concludes that assistance is structured by gender, income level, household financial organisation, residential proximity, need and ideology. In terms of the provision of continuing support to households with young children, grandparents are important but grandmothers give more assistance than grandfathers and they direct it where it is most needed. It is important for grandmothers to have access to paid work. The ideology of assistance is differentiated by class. In professional families the married couple is the unit of transfer but for working class families the solidarity of female relatives, in particular, of daughters and mothers and mothers-in-law, is more important.


2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Sophie Juul ◽  
Faiza Siddiqui ◽  
Marija Barbateskovic ◽  
Caroline Kamp Jørgensen ◽  
Michael Pascal Hengartner ◽  
...  

Abstract Background Major depressive disorder is one of the most common, burdensome, and costly psychiatric disorders worldwide. Antidepressants are frequently used to treat major depressive disorder. It has been shown repeatedly that antidepressants seem to reduce depressive symptoms with a statistically significant effect, but the clinical importance of the effect sizes seems questionable. Both beneficial and harmful effects of antidepressants have not previously been sufficiently assessed. The main objective of this review will be to evaluate the beneficial and harmful effects of antidepressants versus placebo, ‘active placebo’, or no intervention for adults with major depressive disorder. Methods/design A systematic review with meta-analysis will be reported as recommended by Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analysis (PRISMA), bias will be assessed with the Cochrane Risk of Bias tool-version 2 (ROB2), our eight-step procedure will be used to assess if the thresholds for clinical significance are crossed, Trial Sequential Analysis will be conducted to control for random errors, and the certainty of the evidence will be assessed with the Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development and Evaluation (GRADE) approach. To identify relevant trials, we will search both for published and unpublished trials in major medical databases from their inception to the present. Clinical study reports will be obtained from regulatory authorities and pharmaceutical companies. Two review authors will independently screen the results of the literature searches, extract data, and perform risk of bias assessment. We will include any published or unpublished randomised clinical trial comparing one or more antidepressants with placebo, ‘active placebo’, or no intervention for adults with major depressive disorder. The following active agents will be included: agomelatine, amineptine, amitriptyline, bupropion, butriptyline, cianopramine, citalopram, clomipramine, dapoxetine, demexiptiline, desipramine, desvenlafaxine, dibenzepin, dosulepin, dothiepin, doxepin, duloxetine, escitalopram, fluoxetine, fluvoxamine, imipramine, iprindole, levomilnacipran, lofepramine, maprotiline, melitracen, metapramine, milnacipran, mirtazapine, nefazodone, nortriptyline, noxiptiline, opipramol, paroxetine, protriptyline, quinupramine, reboxetine, sertraline, trazodone, tianeptine, trimipramine, venlafaxine, vilazodone, and vortioxetine. Primary outcomes will be depressive symptoms, serious adverse events, and quality of life. Secondary outcomes will be suicide or suicide attempt, suicidal ideation, and non-serious adverse events. Discussion As antidepressants are commonly used to treat major depressive disorder in adults, a systematic review evaluating their beneficial and harmful effects is urgently needed. This review will inform best practice in treatment and clinical research of this highly prevalent and burdensome disorder. Systematic review registration PROSPERO CRD42020220279


2020 ◽  
Vol 29 ◽  
Author(s):  
C. E. Lloyd ◽  
N. Sartorius ◽  
H. U. Ahmed ◽  
A. Alvarez ◽  
S. Bahendeka ◽  
...  

Abstract Aims To examine the factors that are associated with changes in depression in people with type 2 diabetes living in 12 different countries. Methods People with type 2 diabetes treated in out-patient settings aged 18–65 years underwent a psychiatric assessment to diagnose major depressive disorder (MDD) at baseline and follow-up. At both time points, participants completed the Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9), the WHO five-item Well-being scale (WHO-5) and the Problem Areas in Diabetes (PAID) scale which measures diabetes-related distress. A composite stress score (CSS) (the occurrence of stressful life events and their reported degree of ‘upset’) between baseline and follow-up was calculated. Demographic data and medical record information were collected. Separate regression analyses were conducted with MDD and PHQ-9 scores as the dependent variables. Results In total, there were 7.4% (120) incident cases of MDD with 81.5% (1317) continuing to remain free of a diagnosis of MDD. Univariate analyses demonstrated that those with MDD were more likely to be female, less likely to be physically active, more likely to have diabetes complications at baseline and have higher CSS. Mean scores for the WHO-5, PAID and PHQ-9 were poorer in those with incident MDD compared with those who had never had a diagnosis of MDD. Regression analyses demonstrated that higher PHQ-9, lower WHO-5 scores and greater CSS were significant predictors of incident MDD. Significant predictors of PHQ-9 were baseline PHQ-9 score, WHO-5, PAID and CSS. Conclusion This study demonstrates the importance of psychosocial factors in addition to physiological variables in the development of depressive symptoms and incident MDD in people with type 2 diabetes. Stressful life events, depressive symptoms and diabetes-related distress all play a significant role which has implications for practice. A more holistic approach to care, which recognises the interplay of these psychosocial factors, may help to mitigate their impact on diabetes self-management as well as MDD, thus early screening and treatment for symptoms is recommended.


2017 ◽  
Vol 41 (S1) ◽  
pp. S510-S510
Author(s):  
K. Yoshimasu ◽  
S. Takemura ◽  
E. Myasoedova ◽  
S. Myasoedova

IntroductionDrinking has been shown to be a protective factor against the risk of rheumatoid arthritis (RA). On the other hand, high prevalence of depressive symptoms has been observed among RA patients.ObjectiveTo evaluate the association between depressive symptoms and somatic factors as well as drinking habits in RA patients.MethodsDrinking habits and physical symptoms in 182 female RA outpatients in Ivanovo, Russia (average [standard deviation] of age, 62.0 [11.7] years), were investigated. Drinking status was classified as current drinkers (alcohol consumption within the previous 12 months) and others. Depressive symptoms were evaluated with MINI, HADS and CES-D questionnaires. Outcomes were (a) presence or history of major depressive disorder, presence of melancholic major depressive disorder, presence of dysthymia, or 1 point or greater of suicidal risk score in MINI, (b) 8 points or greater in HADS-depression, (c) 8 points or greater in HADS-anxiety, and (d) 16 points or greater in CES-D. Stepwise logistic regression was used to evaluate somatic factors associated with depressive symptoms, with age and drinking status included.ResultsDrinking was rather protective against depression, but did not reach statistical significance. Symptomatic parts in the extremities associated with the outcomes were shoulders for MINI, elbows and knees for HADS-depression, shoulders for HADS-anxiety, and hands, elbows and shoulders for CES-D. In the stepwise selection, some symptoms in the extremities were positively associated with the outcomes.ConclusionSymptoms chiefly in large joints contributed to depressive symptoms.Disclosure of interestThe authors have not supplied their declaration of competing interest.


2021 ◽  
pp. 000486742199879
Author(s):  
Pavitra Aran ◽  
Andrew J Lewis ◽  
Stuart J Watson ◽  
Thinh Nguyen ◽  
Megan Galbally

Objective: Poorer mother–infant interaction quality has been identified among women with major depression; however, there is a dearth of research examining the impact of bipolar disorder. This study sought to compare mother–infant emotional availability at 6 months postpartum among women with perinatal major depressive disorder, bipolar disorder and no disorder (control). Methods: Data were obtained for 127 mother–infant dyads from an Australian pregnancy cohort. The Structured Clinical Interview for the DSM-5 was used to diagnose major depressive disorder ( n = 60) and bipolar disorder ( n = 12) in early pregnancy (less than 20 weeks) and review diagnosis at 6 months postpartum. Prenatal and postnatal depressive symptoms were measured using the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale, along with self-report psychotropic medication use. Mother and infant’s interaction quality was measured using the Emotional Availability Scales when infants reached 6 months of age. Multivariate analyses of covariance examining the effects of major depressive disorder and bipolar disorder on maternal emotional availability (sensitivity, structuring, non-intrusiveness, non-hostility) and child emotional availability (responsiveness, involvement) were conducted. Results: After controlling for maternal age and postpartum depressive symptoms, perinatal disorder (major depressive disorder, bipolar disorder) accounted for 17% of the variance in maternal and child emotional availability combined. Compared to women with major depressive disorder and their infants, women with bipolar disorder and their infants displayed lower ratings across all maternal and child emotional availability qualities, with the greatest mean difference seen in non-intrusiveness scores. Conclusions: Findings suggest that perinatal bipolar disorder may be associated with additional risk, beyond major depressive disorder alone, to a mother and her offspring’s emotional availability at 6 months postpartum, particularly in maternal intrusiveness.


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