Effects of gender and diagnosis on growth hormone response to clonidine for major depression: a large-scale multicenter study.
OBJECTIVE
The authors' goal was to establish, in a large multicenter sample of patients classified according to gender and menopausal status, if the growth hormone (GH) response to clonidine discriminated patients with episodes of major depression from patients with episodes of minor depression.


METHODS
The GH response to intravenous clonidine administration (150 micrograms) was compared in 71 male and 140 female patients with major depressive episodes and 47 male and 53 female patients with minor depressive episodes. These patients were diagnosed according to Research Diagnostic Criteria.


RESULTS
Differences in the GH response to clonidine between diagnostic groups occurred only between male patients. These results were found in the group as a whole and in each center. The GH responses to clonidine of premenopausal women differed significantly from those of postmenopausal women in each diagnostic group.


CONCLUSIONS
These results confirm that gender and menopausal status are of the utmost importance in the interpretation of the clonidine GH test.
Schittecatte
M
M
Department of Psychiatry, Hôpital Vincent Van Gogh, Marchienne-Au-Pont, Belgium.
Charles
G
G
Machowski
R
R
Dumont
F
F
Garcia-Valentin
J
J
Wilmotte
J
J
Papart
P
P
Pitchot
W
W
Wauthy
J
J
Ansseau
M
M
D000328:Adult; D015415:Biomarkers / Q000097:blood; D003000:Clonidine / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000494:pharmacology; D003866:Depressive Disorder / Q000097:blood / Q000175:diagnosis*; D003937:Diagnosis, Differential; D005260:Female; D013006:Growth Hormone / Q000097:blood*; D006801:Humans; D007275:Injections, Intravenous; D008297:Male; D008593:Menopause; D008875:Middle Aged; D012737:Sex Factors
D015415:Biomarkers; D013006:Growth Hormone; D003000:Clonidine