OBJECTIVE: Data from depressed women with and without a history of childhood sexual abuse were used to characterize clinical features that distinguished the two groups and to examine relationships of childhood sexual abuse to lifetime deliberate self-harm and recent interpersonal violence.

METHOD: One hundred twenty-five women with depressive disorders were interviewed and completed self-report questionnaires. Path analysis was used to examine relationships of several childhood and ...

BACKGROUND: Mobile phone-based psychological interventions enable real time self-monitoring and self-management, and large-scale dissemination. However, few studies have focussed on mild-to-moderate symptoms where public health need is greatest, and none have targeted work and social functioning. This study reports outcomes of a CONSORT-compliant randomised controlled trial (RCT) to evaluate the efficacy of myCompass, a self-guided psychological treatment delivered via mobile phone and ...

BACKGROUND: The benefits of self-monitoring on symptom severity, coping, and quality of life have been amply demonstrated. However, paper and pencil self-monitoring can be cumbersome and subject to biases associated with retrospective recall, while computer-based monitoring can be inconvenient in that it relies on users being at their computer at scheduled monitoring times. As a result, nonadherence in self-monitoring is common. Mobile phones offer an alternative. Their take-up has ...

The objectives of this study were: (1) to examine Composite International Diagnostic Interview (CIDI) period prevalence and comorbidity for depression and anxiety disorder in a cohort of women assessed during the first 6–8 months postpartum and (2) to examine the benefits of combining the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale (EPDS) with a simple “interval symptom” question to optimize screening postpartum. Women aged over 18 (N = 1,549) were assessed during late pregnancy and reviewed at ...

OBJECTIVE: The risk-benefit profile of antidepressant medications in bipolar disorder is controversial. When conclusive evidence is lacking, expert consensus can guide treatment decisions. The International Society for Bipolar Disorders (ISBD) convened a task force to seek consensus recommendations on the use of antidepressants in bipolar disorders.

METHOD: An expert task force iteratively developed consensus through serial consensus-based revisions using the Delphi method. Initial ...

AIMS: To assess whether links exist between maternal trait anxiety (STAI), perceived life event (LE) stress and depression (Edinburgh scale) and infant temperament.

STUDY DESIGN AND SUBJECTS: Women in the third trimester of pregnancy returned psychological self-report questionnaires; infant temperament was evaluated at 4 and 6 months by maternal and paternal report, while depression (concurrent Edinburgh scale) was also assessed at four and six months. As data were returned ...

BACKGROUND: Hippocampal volume reduction has been reported inconsistently in people with major depression.

AIMS: To evaluate the interrelationships between hippocampal volumes, memory and key clinical, vascular and genetic risk factors.

METHOD: Totals of 66 people with depression and 20 control participants underwent magnetic resonance imaging and clinical assessment. Measures of depression severity, psychomotor retardation, verbal and visual memory and vascular and specific genetic risk ...

BACKGROUND: A relationship between the serotonin transporter gene, adverse events and onset of major depression has been reported.

AIMS: To replicate a gene x environment interaction in a cohort with longitudinal data for life events, experience of depression, parental bonding and neuroticism.

METHOD: At the 25-year follow-up, genomic DNA was obtained from 127 cohort members (mean age 48 years) to determine the genotype of the serotonin transporter gene-linked promoter region (5-HTTLPR). ...

Individuals with bipolar disorder manifest the full spectrum of emotions ranging from depression to mania. In attempting to understand the functional substrates of mood we attempted to identify brain regions associated with the cognitive generation of affect in bipolar depressed patients. We therefore examined ten depressed female subjects with bipolar affective disorder, and ten age-matched and sex-matched healthy comparison subjects using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) ...

IMPORTANCE: Patients with melancholia report a distinct and intrusive dysphoric state during internally generated thought. Melancholia has long been considered to have a strong biological component, but evidence for its specific neurobiological origins is limited. The distinct neurocognitive, psychomotor, and mood disturbances observed in melancholia do, however, suggest aberrant coordination of frontal-subcortical circuitry, which may best be captured through analysis of complex brain ...

BACKGROUND: Antenatal anxiety has received increased attention with regards to both its impact on infant outcomes and as a risk factor for postnatal depression. The measurement of anxiety in the perinatal setting, however, has proven to be challenging. The aims of the present study are to: determine whether antenatal anxiety as measured by the Brief Measure of Worry Severity (BMWS) is a significant predictor of postnatal depression (PND); examine the psychometric properties of a new ...

BACKGROUND: Studies of depression in the Chinese have long identified low rates and a greater likelihood of somatization, findings which could reflect cultural influences or real differences. We report a study from a western region examining the impact of acculturation on depression to clarify the role of cultural factors.

METHOD: In a Sydney-based study, Chinese subjects (n = 385) and a matched control group of 143 non-Chinese subjects completed either a Chinese or English questionnaire ...

BACKGROUND: Youth mental health is a significant public health concern due to the high prevalence of mental health problems in this population and the low rate of those affected seeking help. While it is increasingly recognized that prevention is better than cure, most youth prevention programs have utilized interventions based on clinical treatments (eg, cognitive behavioral therapy) with inconsistent results.

OBJECTIVE: This study explores the feasibility of the online delivery of a ...

BACKGROUND: The clinical validity of melancholia has been argued on the basis of its capacity to predict response to electroconvulsive therapy (ECT). We have argued that a sign-based (CORE) rating system of psychomotor disturbance can identify patients with melancholia. Therefore, the clinical validity of the CORE system was tested here in terms of its capacity to predict response to ECT.

METHOD: The response of 81 patients with primary affective disorders to an individualised course of ...

BACKGROUND: Lifetime rates of depression are distinctly higher in women reflecting both real and artefactual influences. Most prevalence studies quantifying a female preponderance have examined severity-based diagnostic groups such as major depression or dysthymia. We examined gender differences across three depressive sub-type conditions using four differing measures to determine whether any gender differences emerge more from severity or symptom prevalence, reflect nuances of the ...