The validation of atypical depression among Chinese outpatients with depressive episodes in general hospital / 中华行为医学与脑科学杂志

ABSTRACT

Objective to evaluate the validation of atypical depression among Chinese outpatients with depressive episodes and explore the role of atypical depressive symptoms in distinguishing bipolar depression from unipolar depression.Methods Structural clinical interviews with self-compiled questionnaires were performed on 276 outpatients with current depressive episode,then comparison of clinical characteristics including age of onset,gender proportion,seasonality,comorbidity of anxiety disorder,bipolar property,psychotic features,number of depressive episodes,and maximum duration of depressive episode were conducted between atypical (defined by DSM-Ⅳ-TR) and nonatypical depression.then the rate of atypical depressive symptoms were compared between unipolar depression and bipolar depression.Results The proportion of atypical depression among all the participants was 23.9％.Compared to nonatypical depression,psychotic features were more likely seen in atypical depression (20.0％ vs 9.1％,P＜0.05),but no difference was found in other clinical features between atypical and nonatypical depression.Except mood reactivity,atypical symptoms including oversleeping(45.5％ vs 26.0％),overeating (22.7％ vs 15.4％),weight gain(24.1％ vs 14.6％),leaden paralysis (56.6％ vs 47.2％),interpersonal rejection sensitivity(66.7％ vs 34.2％) were more likely to occur in bipolar depression than in unipolar depression,the difference was statistically significant for oversleeping and interpersonal rejection sensitivity (P ＜ 0.05).Patients with mood reactivity differed little from those without mood reactivity in other clinical features.No association was found between mood reactivity,leaden paralysis and other criteria symptoms of atypical depression.Conclusion-Atypical depression might be a useful concept,but its diagnostic criteria needs further validation among Chinese population.