Assessing Pragmatic Language Skills in Adults with Major Depressive Disorder: An Exploratory Study

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-14
Author(s):  
Maria Clelia Zurlo ◽  
Maura Ruggiero
Keyword(s):  
Major Depressive Disorder ◽  
Depressive Disorder ◽  
Language Skills ◽  
Pragmatic Language ◽  
Major Depressive ◽  
Pragmatic Language Skills ◽  
Healthy Control ◽  
Indirect Requests ◽  
Education And Employment ◽  
Definition Of

Introduction: There is increasing evidence that major depressive disorder (MDD) is associated with significant pragmatic language impairments. However, there is a lack of studies that use standardized tools and simultaneously investigate all pragmatic language skills among MDD patients. The aim of this study was to propose a more thorough investigation of all pragmatic language skills in patients with MDD. Methods: Twenty adults (aged 22–65) with a DSM-5 diagnosis of MDD were assessed using BLED Santa Lucia (Batteria sul Linguaggio dell’Emisfero Destro Santa Lucia), a battery designed to evaluate pragmatic language skills (comprehension of inferences, of picture and written metaphors, of indirect requests, of humoristic expressions, and of prosody). The performance of the MDD participants on all BLED Santa Lucia subscales was compared to 20 healthy control subjects (aged 20–60) matched for gender, age, years of education, and employment status. Results: MDD patients performed poorer than controls in comprehension of inferences (p < 0.01), picture metaphors (p < 0.001), written metaphors (p < 0.001), indirect requests (p < 0.01), humoristic expression (p < 0.05), and prosody (p < 0.05). Conclusions: All pragmatic language skills can be significantly impaired in MDD patients. A valid assessment of all pragmatic language skills can allow, for each patient, the definition of a specific profile of risk and protective factors before and during psychotherapy.

scholarly journals Haematological and Haemostatic Changes Associated with Major Depressive Disorder among Nigerians.

2021 ◽  
Vol 5 (2) ◽  
pp. 238-245
Author(s):  
Oloruntoba A. Ekun
Keyword(s):  
Major Depressive Disorder ◽  
Depressive Disorder ◽  
Sodium Citrate ◽  
Red Cell ◽  
Major Depressive ◽  
Red Cell Indices ◽  
Healthy Control ◽  
The Mean ◽  
Number Of Individuals ◽  
Apparently Healthy

Background: A link between major depressive disorder (MDD) and haematological as well as co-agulation disorders has been postulated. This study aims to evaluate haematological and haemostatic changes among Nigerians with major depressive disorder Methods: Two hundred volunteers consisting of an equal number of individuals diagnosed with major depressive disorder (MDD) based on DMS-IV criteria and apparently healthy control participated in this study. The blood sample was collected into tri-sodium citrate K2EDTA bottles respectively and was evaluated for some haemostatic parameters , using ELISA, Clauss, Quick’s One Stage, Proctor and Rapaport’s methods. Results: The mean WBC, hemoglobin and differential lymphocyte were significantly higher among MDD total volunteers (p < 0.001). The red cell indices and platelet count were lower among MDD (p <0.001). Also the prothrombin time (PT), fibrinogen, protein-C and erythrocytes sedimentation rate (ESR) were all raised (p <0.001) among volunteers with MDD. Positive associations existed be-tween MCV and RBC (r: 0.364; p<0.001), PT and APTT (r: 0.319 p <0.001), APTT and fibrinogen (r: 0.239, p = 0.017) as well as PT and fibrinogen (r: 0.275 p = 0.006) at 95% confidence interval. Conclusion: Changes in total leucocytes count, lymphocytes values and haemostatic parameters among volunteers with depression may impacts deleterious effects on the immune response as well as haemostatic homeostasis, while decreased red cell indices may suggest occult nutritional anaemia.

A simpler definition of major depressive disorder

2009 ◽  
Vol 40 (3) ◽  
pp. 451-457 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. Zimmerman ◽  
J. N. Galione ◽  
I. Chelminski ◽  
J. B. McGlinchey ◽  
D. Young ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Major Depressive Disorder ◽  
Depressive Disorder ◽  
Somatic Symptoms ◽  
Structured Interview ◽  
Major Depressive ◽  
Medically Ill ◽  
Treatment Providers ◽  
Dsm Iv ◽  
Definition Of ◽  
High Level

BackgroundThe DSM-IV symptom criteria for major depressive disorder (MDD) are somewhat lengthy, with many studies showing that treatment providers have difficulty recalling all nine symptoms. Moreover, the criteria include somatic symptoms that are difficult to apply in patients with medical illnesses. In a previous report, we developed a briefer definition of MDD that was composed of the mood and cognitive symptoms of the DSM-IV criteria, and found high levels of agreement between the simplified and full DSM-IV definitions. The goal of the present study was to replicate these findings in another large sample of psychiatric out-patients and to extend the findings to other patient samples.MethodWe interviewed 1100 psychiatric out-patients and 210 pathological gamblers presenting for treatment and 1200 candidates for bariatric surgery. All patients were interviewed by a diagnostic rater who administered a semi-structured interview. We inquired about all symptoms of depression for all patients.ResultsIn all three samples high levels of agreement were found between the DSM-IV and the simpler definition of MDD. Summing across all 2510 patients, the level of agreement between the two definitions was 95.5% and the κ coefficient was 0.87.ConclusionsAfter eliminating the four somatic criteria from the DSM-IV definition of MDD, a high level of concordance was found between this simpler definition and the original DSM-IV classification. This new definition offers two advantages over the current DSM-IV definition – it is briefer and it is easier to apply with medically ill patients because it is free of somatic symptoms.

Validity of a simpler definition of major depressive disorder

2010 ◽  
Vol 27 (10) ◽  
pp. 977-981 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mark Zimmerman ◽  
Janine N. Galione ◽  
Iwona Chelminski ◽  
Diane Young ◽  
Kristy Dalrymple ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Major Depressive Disorder ◽  
Depressive Disorder ◽  
Major Depressive ◽  
Definition Of

scholarly journals Plasma metabolomic profiling of a ketamine and placebo crossover trial of major depressive disorder and healthy control subjects

2018 ◽  
Vol 235 (10) ◽  
pp. 3017-3030 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ruin Moaddel ◽  
Michelle Shardell ◽  
Mohammed Khadeer ◽  
Jacqueline Lovett ◽  
Bashkim Kadriu ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Major Depressive Disorder ◽  
Depressive Disorder ◽  
Crossover Trial ◽  
Major Depressive ◽  
Control Subjects ◽  
Metabolomic Profiling ◽  
Healthy Control

scholarly journals Molecular connectivity disruptions in males with major depressive disorder

2018 ◽  
Vol 39 (8) ◽  
pp. 1623-1634 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rajapillai LI Pillai ◽  
Mengru Zhang ◽  
Jie Yang ◽  
J John Mann ◽  
Maria A Oquendo ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Major Depressive Disorder ◽  
Depressive Disorder ◽  
High Sensitivity ◽  
Binding Potential ◽  
Molecular Connectivity ◽  
Major Depressive ◽  
Positron Emission ◽  
Healthy Control ◽  
Synaptic Receptors ◽  
Molecular Brain

In most positron emission tomography (PET) molecular brain imaging studies, regions of interest have been defined anatomically and examined in isolation. However, by defining regions based on physiology and examining relationships between them, we may derive more sensitive measures of receptor abnormalities in conditions such as major depressive disorder (MDD). Using an average of 52 normalized binding potential maps, acquired using radiotracer [11C]-WAY100635 and full arterial input analysis, we identified two molecular volumes of interest (VOIs) with contiguously high serotonin 1A receptor (5-HT1A) binding sites: the olfactory sulcus (OLFS) and a band of tissue including piriform, olfactory, and entorhinal cortex (PRF). We applied these VOIs to a separate cohort of 25 healthy control males and 16 males with MDD who received [11C]-WAY100635 imaging. Patients with MDD had significantly higher binding than controls in both VOIs, ( p < 0.01). To identify potential homeostatic disruptions in MDD, we examined molecular connectivity, i.e. the correlation between binding of raphe nucleus (RN) 5-HT1A autoreceptors and post-synaptic receptors in molecular VOIs. Molecular connectivity was significant in healthy controls ( p < 0.01), but not in patients with MDD. This disruption in molecular connectivity allowed identification of MDD cases with high sensitivity (81%) and specificity (88%).

scholarly journals Migraine associated with early onset postpartum depression in women with major depressive disorder

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Katherine Gordon-Smith ◽  
Paul Ridley ◽  
Amy Perry ◽  
Nicholas Craddock ◽  
Ian Jones ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Major Depressive Disorder ◽  
Postpartum Depression ◽  
Depressive Disorder ◽  
Hormonal Changes ◽  
Genetic Determinants ◽  
Major Depressive ◽  
History Of ◽  
Specific Association ◽  
Definition Of ◽  
Reproductive Events

AbstractMajor depressive disorder (MDD) and migraine are both more common among women than men. Women’s reproductive years are associated with increased susceptibility to recurrence of both conditions, suggesting a potential role of sex hormones in aetiology. We examined associations between comorbid migraine and clinical features of MDD in women, including relationships with lifetime reproductive events such as childbirth. Lifetime clinical characteristics and reproductive events in a well-characterised sample of 222 UK women with recurrent MDD, with (n = 98) and without (n = 124) migraine were compared. Women had all been recruited as part of a UK-based ongoing programme of research into the genetic and non-genetic determinants of mood disorders. Multivariate analysis showed a specific association between the lifetime presence of migraine and postpartum depression (PPD) within 6 weeks of delivery (OR = 2.555; 95% CI: 1.037–6.295, p = 0.041). This association did not extend to a broader definition of PPD with onset up to 6 months postpartum. All other factors included in the analysis were not significantly associated with the presence of migraine: family history of depression, younger age at depression onset, history of suicide attempt and severe premenstrual syndrome symptoms. The finding that women with MDD and comorbid migraine may be particularly sensitive to hormonal changes early in the postpartum period leads to aetiological hypotheses and suggests this group may be useful for future studies attempting to characterise PPD and MDD phenotypes. The refinement of such phenotypes has implications for individualising risk and treatment and for future biological and genetic studies.

scholarly journals The role of blame-related action tendencies in the vulnerability to major depressive disorder

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Suqian Duan ◽  
Andrew Lawrence ◽  
Lucia Valmaggia ◽  
Jorge Moll ◽  
Roland Zahn
Keyword(s):  
Major Depressive Disorder ◽  
Depressive Disorder ◽  
Major Depressive ◽  
Self Blame ◽  
Cognitive Markers ◽  
Healthy Control ◽  
History Of ◽  
General Scientific ◽  
Action Tendencies

AbstractBackgroundPersisting self-blaming emotional biases were previously associated with vulnerability to major depressive disorder (MDD). More specifically self-contempt/disgust biases distinguished remitted MDD, compared with never-depressed control participants. The contribution of action tendencies to MDD vulnerability and their relationship with blame-related emotions to prepare for subsequent behaviour is elusive. Here, we investigated whether maladaptive action tendencies such as “creating a distance from oneself” and “hiding” are associated with MDD vulnerability, as well as with self-disgust/contempt and shame respectively.Methods76 participants with medication-free remitted MDD and 44 healthy control (HC) participants without a personal or family history of MDD completed the value-related moral sentiment task, which measured their blame-related emotions during hypothetical social interactions and a novel task to assess their blame-related action tendencies.ResultsAs predicted, the MDD group exhibited a higher proneness to feeling like hiding and creating a distance from themselves compared with the HC group. Interestingly, apologising for one’s wrongdoing, was associated with all self-blaming emotions including shame, guilt, self-contempt/disgust and self-indignation, but was more common in HC. In contrast, apologising and perceiving to be in control of one’s friend’s wrongdoings were more common in MDD. Although shame was indeed associated with hiding, this was also true of guilt. Self-disgust/contempt was associated with attacking rather than creating a distance from oneself.ConclusionsMDD vulnerability was associated with specific maladaptive action tendencies which were not clearly predicted by the type of emotion, thus unveiling novel cognitive markers and neurocognitive treatment targets.General Scientific summaryThis study confirmed the hypothesis that specific maladaptive action tendencies related to self-blame, such as feeling like hiding and feeling like creating a distance from oneself, were distinctive of people with major depressive disorder, even on remission of symptoms. These action tendencies were not clearly predicted by the type of emotion experienced, showing the importance of assessing them directly. This calls for novel psychological and neurocognitive treatments specifically aiming at maladaptive action tendencies which have so far not been directly addressed in standard assessments and treatments.

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