This Article  • References  • Full text PDF  • Reply to article  • Send to a friend  • Save in My Folder  • Save to citation manager  • Permissions  Citing Articles  • Citation map  • Citing articles on HighWire  • Contact me when this article is cited  Related Content  • Similar articles in this journal  Social Bookmarking   What's this?

Hagop S. Akiskal, MD; Renate H. Rosenthal, PhD; Ted L. Rosenthal, PhD; Mark Kashgarian, MD; Munir K. Khani, MD; Vahe R. Puzantian, MD

Arch Gen Psychiatry. 1979;36(6):635-643.

Abstract
• Analysis of family history and antidepressant drug response variables of 100 "neurotic" depressives followed up prospectively over three to four years disclosed that primary depressions (unipolar and bipolar) could be distinguished from nonprimary cases by (1) the early occurrence of "pharmacological-hypomania;" (2) family history of bipolar illness; (3) family history for affective disorder in two or three consecutive generations, especially when "loaded." Although each of these variables alone occurred in only one fifth to one third of the primary group, they individually displayed better than 95% specificity for it. Thus, the confidence with which the diagnosis of primary affective illness could be made in the presence of any of these variables ranged from 88% to 100%. These findings argue for considering such nonsymptomatological variables for their potential in strengthening the phenomenologic diagnostic criteria for depressive illness.

Author Affiliations
From the Mood Clinic, Affective Diseases Program, Department of Psychiatry (Drs Akiskal, R. Rosenthal, T. Rosenthal, and Puzantian), the Department of Pharmacology (Dr Akiskal), the Psychiatric Service, City of Memphis Hospital (Drs R. Rosenthal and Puzantian), the Affective Disorder Unit, Veterans Administration Hospital (Dr Khani), and the Forensic Psychiatry Program (Dr Kashgarian), University of Tennessee Center for the Health Sciences, Memphis, and the Department of Psychology, Memphis State University (Drs Akiskal and T. Rosenthal). Dr Kashgarian is now with the US Army at Berlin Meddac, Federal German Republic.

Footnotes
Accepted for publication Jan 4, 1979.

The opinions expressed in this article are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect those of the US Army.

Reprint requests to Mood Clinic, Department of Psychiatry, University of Tennessee, 42 N Dunlap St, Memphis, TN 38103 (Dr Akiskal).

CiteULike    Connotea    Del.icio.us    Digg    Reddit    Technorati    Twitter     What's this?

THIS ARTICLE HAS BEEN CITED BY OTHER ARTICLES

Boundaries of Major Depression: An Evaluation of DSM-IV Criteria
Kendler and Gardner
Am. J. Psychiatry 1998;155:172-177.
ABSTRACT | FULL TEXT  

The Validation of the Concept of Endogenous Depression: A Family Study Approach
Andreasen et al.
Arch Gen Psychiatry 1986;43:246-251.
ABSTRACT  

The Relationship of Personality to Affective Disorders: A Critical Review
Akiskal et al.
Arch Gen Psychiatry 1983;40:801-810.
ABSTRACT  

A Family Study of Schizoaffective, Bipolar I, Bipolar II, Unipolar, and Normal Control Probands
Gershon et al.
Arch Gen Psychiatry 1982;39:1157-1167.
ABSTRACT  

Bipolar Illness in Adolescents With Major Depression: Clinical, Genetic, and Psychopharmacologic Predictors in a Three-to Four-Year Prospective Follow-up Investigation
Strober and Carlson
Arch Gen Psychiatry 1982;39:549-555.
ABSTRACT  

Evaluation of the DSM-III Criteria for Melancholia
Nelson et al.
Arch Gen Psychiatry 1981;38:555-559.
ABSTRACT  

Characterological Depressions: Clinical and Sleep EEG Findings Separating 'Subaffective Dysthymias' From 'Character Spectrum Disorders'
Akiskal et al.
Arch Gen Psychiatry 1980;37:777-783.
ABSTRACT  

Psychiatry
Freedman
JAMA 1980;243:2208-2210.
ABSTRACT