Alexithymia, Suicide Ideation and Homocysteine Levels in Drug Naïve Patients with Major Depression: A Study in the “Real World” Clinical Practice

ABSTRACT

OBJECTIVE: This study was performed to elucidate relationships between alexithymia, suicide ideation and homocysteine levels in drug-naïve outpatients with major depressive disorder (MDD). METHODS: Sixty seven outpatients with MDD with melancholic features were evaluated by the means of the Hamilton Depression Rating Scale, the Toronto Alexithymia Scale (TAS–20), the Scale of Suicide Ideation, and homocysteine levels. RESULTS: Alexithymic subjects showed higher scores on all scales and higher homocysteine levels. Regression analysis shown higher homocysteine levels and TAS-20’ “Difficulty in Describing Feelings” dimension, in turn being associated with higher suicide ideation. CONCLUSION: In conclusion, alexithymic MDD outpatients may characterize for homocysteine dysregulation that may be linked to suicide ideation, regardless depression’ severity. However, study limitations are discussed and must be considered.