Separation of affective disorder into seasonal and nonseasonal types using motion sickness susceptibility as a marker.
A sample of 133 candidates for antidepressant or mood-stabilizing medication treatment, with acute onset or a new phase of illness between the autumnal and vernal equinoxes, was gathered over a 3-year period from a private outpatient practice. All patients were diagnosed using DSM-III-R criteria, rated on a standard motion sickness (MS) questionnaire, and asked whether they had experienced cardinal symptoms of seasonal affective disorder (SAD). There was a positive relationship between greater MS and SAD in the entire patient sample. When a subsample of 23 patients was given a 2-week trial of phototherapy and rated for improvement, MS-susceptible patients responded better than MS-resistant patients.
Mirabile
C S
CS
Institute of Living, Hartford, Connecticut 06106.
Glueck
B C
BC
D003937:Diagnosis, Differential; D005260:Female; D006760:Hospitalization; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D019964:Mood Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000534:rehabilitation; D009041:Motion Sickness / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000628:therapy; D010343:Patient Admission; D010789:Phototherapy; D011569:Psychiatric Status Rating Scales; D016574:Seasonal Affective Disorder / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000628:therapy; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires