Risk For Later Depression Research Articles

Interaction of childhood stress with hippocampus and prefrontal cortex volume reduction in major depression

Early emotional stress is associated with a life-long burden of risk for later depression and stressful life events contribute to the development of depressive episodes. In this study we investigated whether childhood stress is associated with structural brain alterations in patients with major depression (MD). Forty-three patients with MD and 44 age as well as gender matched healthy control subjects were investigated using high-resolution magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). Region of interest analysis of the hippocampus, whole brain voxel-based morphometry (VBM) and assessment of childhood stress was carried out. Significantly smaller hippocampal white matter and prefrontal gray matter volume was observed in patients with MD compared to healthy controls. In particular left hippocampal white matter was smaller in patients, who had emotional childhood neglect, compared to those without neglect. For male patients this effect was seen in the left and right hippocampus. Moreover, physical neglect during childhood affected prefrontal gray matter volume in healthy subjects. Both emotional neglect and brain structural abnormalities predicted cumulative illness duration and there was a significant interaction between emotional neglect and prefrontal volumes as well as hippocampal white matter on the illness course. Childhood neglect resulted in hippocampal white matter changes in patients with major depression, pronounced at the left side and in males. Most interestingly, childhood stress and brain structure volumes independently predicted cumulative illness course. Subjects with both, structural brain changes and childhood emotional neglect seem to be at a very high risk to develop a more severe illness course.

Using sickness absence records to predict future depression in a working population: prospective findings from the GAZEL cohort.

We tested the hypothesis that sickness absence from work predicts workers' risk of later depression. Study participants (n = 7391) belonged to the French GAZEL cohort of employees of the national gas and electricity company. Sickness absence data (1996-1999) were obtained from company records. Participants' depression in 1996 and 1999 was assessed with the Center for Epidemiologic Studies-Depression (CES-D) scale. The analyses were controlled for baseline age, gender, marital status, occupational grade, tobacco smoking status, alcohol consumption, subthreshold depressive symptoms, and work stress. Among workers who were free of depression in 1996, 13% had depression in 1999. Compared with workers with no sickness absence during the study period, those with sickness absence were more likely to be depressed at follow-up (for 1 period of sickness absence, fully adjusted odds ratio [OR] = 1.53, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.28, 1.82; for 2 or more periods, fully adjusted OR = 1.95, 95% CI = 1.61, 2.36). Future depression was predicted both by psychiatric and nonpsychiatric sickness absence (fully adjusted OR = 3.79 [95% CI = 2.81, 5.10] and 1.41 [95% CI = 1.21, 1.65], respectively). Sickness absence records may help identify workers vulnerable to future depression.

Childhood bullying as a risk for later depression and suicidal ideation among Finnish males

Childhood bullying as a risk for later depression and suicidal ideation among Finnish males

Prospective associations between depressive symptoms and eating disorder symptoms among adolescent girls

Although eating disorders are frequently associated with depression, evidence regarding which problem predicts the other is conflicting, and little research has addressed the developmental course of this relation. This study examined longitudinal associations between depression and eating pathology across adolescence. Participants were 754 girls participating in the community-based Minnesota Twin Family Study. Depressive symptoms and eating pathology were assessed at approximately ages 11, 14, and 17. As expected, substantial continuity in both eating pathology and depressive symptoms occurred across time. Analysis of cross-lag paths controlling for earlier levels of symptoms indicated that overall levels of eating pathology predicted later depressive symptoms from 11 to 14 and from 14 to 17. Adolescent girls with high levels of eating-related pathology appear to be at risk for later depression.

Childhood bullying as a risk for later depression and suicidal ideation among Finnish males

Background Little is known about the predictive association between childhood bullying behavior with depression and suicidal ideation at age 18. Methods The sample included 2348 boys born in 1981. Information about bullying was gathered at the age of 8 from self, parent and teacher's reports. Depression and suicidal ideation were assessed during the Finnish military call-up examination. Results Based on regression models, boys who were bullies frequently, but not merely sometimes, were more likely to be severely depressed and to report suicidal ideation compared to boys who were not bullies. When controlling for depression at age 8 the association between frequent bullying and severe depression was maintained but the association with suicidal ideation became non-significant. Boys who were only victimized were not more likely to be depressed or to report suicidal ideation at age 18. Boys who were frequently both bullies and victims were found to be at risk for later depression. Limitations Our finding can only be generalized to boys who were involved in bullying at elementary school age. Data at age 18 was based only on self-reports and the bullying/victimization questions were very general. Conclusions Childhood bullying behavior is a risk factor for later depression. Screening and intervention for bullying behavior in the early school years is recommended to avoid subsequent internalizing problem in late adolescence.

Symptoms of Internalizing and Externalizing Problems: Modeling Recovery Curves After the Death of a Parent

The death of a parent is a major family disruption that can place children at risk for later depression and other mental health problems. Theoretically based randomized controlled trial for parentally bereaved children. Two-hundred and forty-four children and adolescents and their caregivers from 156 families were randomly assigned to the Family Bereavement Program (FBP) intervention condition (90 families; 135 children) or to a control condition (66 families; 109 children). Data collection occurred from 1996 to 1998. Children and caregivers in the intervention condition met separately for 12 two-hour weekly sessions. Skills targeted by the program for children included positive coping, stress appraisals, control beliefs, and self-esteem. The caregiver program targeted caregiver mental health, life stressors, and improved discipline in the home. Both child and caregiver programs focused on improved quality of the caregiver-child relationship. Child and caregiver reports of internalizing and externalizing symptoms. Longitudinal growth curve modeling was performed to model symptoms over time from the point of parental death. The rate of recovery for girls in the program condition was significantly different from that of girls in the control condition across all outcomes. Boys in both conditions showed reduced symptoms over time. The methodology offers a conceptually unique way of assessing recovery in terms of reduced mental health problems over time after an event and has contributed to further understanding of FBP intervention effects. The intervention program facilitated recovery among girls, who did not show reduction in behavior problems without the program, while boys demonstrated decreased symptoms even without intervention.

Which Comes First in Adolescence—Sex and Drugs or Depression?

The notion that adolescents "self-medicate" depression with substance use and sexual behaviors is widespread, but the temporal ordering of depression and these risk behaviors is not clear. This study tests whether gender-specific patterns of substance use and sexual behavior precede and predict depression or vice versa. Data are from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health, weighted to produce population estimates. The sample includes 13,491 youth, grades 7 to 11, interviewed in 1995 and again 1 year later. Multivariate logistic regression analyses, conducted in 2004, tested temporal ordering, controlling for covariates. The main outcome measures were depression, as measured by a modified Center for Epidemiological Studies-Depression Scale (CES-D), and three behavior patterns: (1) abstaining from sexual intercourse and drug use, (2) experimental behavior patterns, and (3) high-risk behavior patterns. Overall, sex and drug behavior predicted an increased likelihood of depression, but depression did not predict behavior. Among girls, both experimental and high-risk behavior patterns predicted depression. Among boys, only high-risk behavior patterns increased the odds of later depression. Depression did not predict behavior in boys, or experimental behavior in girls; but it decreased the odds of high-risk behavior among abstaining girls (RRR = 0.14) and increased the odds of high-risk behavior (RRR = 2.68) among girls already experimenting with substance use. Engaging in sex and drug behaviors places adolescents, and especially girls, at risk for future depression. Future research is needed to better understand the mechanisms of the relationship between adolescent behavior and depression, and to determine whether interventions to prevent or stop risky behaviors will also reduce the risk of later depression.

Self-efficacy in 18-month-old toddlers of depressed and nondepressed mothers

Low self-efficacy is a key component of depression. Toddlers of depressed mothers may be at risk for impaired development of self-efficacy because of maternal modeling, diminished encouragement of toddlers' efforts, and/or biological contributions. We examined emerging self-efficacy in 70 toddlers of depressed mothers and 62 toddlers of nondepressed mothers. Depressed mothers had sought treatment and were diagnosed using a structured psychiatric interview. Toddlers were observed while working on a variety of mastery tasks, and an index of self-efficacy was constructed from behavior and affect. As expected, findings indicated that toddlers of depressed mothers showed less self-efficacy. Furthermore, more recent exposure to depression was associated with lower self-efficacy. These findings extend downward in age prior work indicating lower self-efficacy in children of depressed mothers. Early impairment in self-efficacy may place children at risk for later depression and thus may be one pathway for the intergenerational transmission of depression.

Cannabis use and mental health in young people: cohort study

Objective: To determine whether cannabis use in adolescence predisposes to higher rates of depression and anxiety in young adulthood.Design: Seven wave cohort study over six years.Setting: 44 schools in the...

Highly somatizing young adolescents and the risk of depression.

To determine if high levels of somatization symptoms in 13- to 16-year-olds from the general population predict risk of major depression and other psychiatric disorders 4 years later. Cohort study, using interview and self-report survey data from the 1983 Ontario Child Health Study (OCHS) and 1987 OCHS Follow-up. The study population included 1015 13- to 16-year-olds from the general community within Ontario. Baseline levels of somatization and emotional disorder were measured by the Survey Diagnostic Instrument, a checklist based on DSM-III criteria. Data were also collected for a range of sociodemographic factors, as well as the presence of chronic health problems. Major depression, anxiety disorders, and substance abuse and dependency at follow-up were measured using a self-administered questionnaire derived from the Diagnostic Interview Schedule. Bivariate and multiple logistic regression techniques were used to assess the relationship between high levels of somatization symptoms (>90th percentile) and later emotional morbidity, with adjustment for potential confounding factors, including gender and baseline disorders. Highly somatizing adolescents are at increased risk of major depression 4 years later, an association that is not explained by detectable emotional disorder at baseline or gender differences between groups. There is an important interaction between somatization and emotional disorder in predicting risk of major depression. It is primarily the group of 13- to 16-year-olds not recognized as being emotionally disordered at the initial OCHS survey in which somatization symptoms increased risk of later depression. The young teen with high levels of somatic complaints had as much risk of later depression as his/her peer with more typical symptoms of emotional disorder. Highly somatizing adolescents were also more likely to describe panic attacks at 4-year follow-up. There was no increased risk of substance abuse/dependency in the highly somatizing group or in generalized anxiety. High levels of somatic symptoms identified in young adolescents in the community represent a significant risk factor for major depression 4 years later, particularly in those individuals who do not present with more typical symptoms of emotional disorder. To detect the emergence of this serious emotional morbidity, adequate follow-up and continuity of care for these challenging patients are needed.

Accounting for sex differences in depression through female victimization: Childhood sexual abuse

Unipolar depression is nearly twice as prevalent is women as men (Nolen-Hoeksema, 1987). Several theories attempting to account for this disparity have been proposed, but none has yet systematically considered women's victimization experiences as a possible significant contributor to their high risk for later depression. One type of victimization that is much more common in females than males is child sexual abuse. Recent research indicates that the long-term effects of child sexual abuse include anxiety, depression, and low self-esteem. In this paper, we review research suggesting that child sexual abuse can account for a significant portion of the differences in the rates of depression between females and males.