Neuroanatomical substrates of late-life minor depression. A quantitative magnetic resonance imaging study.
OBJECTIVE
To examine the neuroanatomical correlates of late-life minor depression using magnetic resonance imaging.


METHODS
Cross-sectional quantitative magnetic resonance imaging study of elderly patients with minor depression and age-matched controls.


METHODS
Patients and controls were recruited from the community through advertisements to the Section of Geriatric Psychiatry, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia.


METHODS
Our sample included 18 subjects diagnosed as having minor depression using the modified Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fourth Edition, research criteria and 31 controls without depression. Patients were free of other central nervous system disease and both groups had comparable degrees of medical comorbidity.


METHODS
All images were acquired on a 1.5-T scanner and absolute and normalized quantitative measures of global and focal brain and cerebrospinal fluid volumes were compared between groups.


RESULTS
Prefrontal lobe volume was significantly smaller in the group with minor depression (P = .002) compared with controls after controlling for age, sex, and age by sex interactions. More global measures of brain and cerebrospinal fluid volumes were comparable in both groups.


CONCLUSIONS
These data suggest that focal prefrontal atrophy may provide an important neuroanatomical substrate in late-life minor depression.
Kumar
A
A
Departments of Psychiatry, University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine, Philadelphia, USA.
Schweizer
E
E
Jin
Z
Z
Miller
D
D
Bilker
W
W
Swan
L L
LL
Gottlieb
G
G
D000368:Aged; D000375:Aging / Q000523:psychology*; D001921:Brain / Q000473:pathology*; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D003863:Depression / Q000175:diagnosis*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D017397:Prefrontal Cortex / Q000473:pathology; D012016:Reference Values