title: Habituation and sensitization processes in depressive disorders.
abstract: The aim of the present study was to investigate further into habituation and sensitization processes in depressive disorders. The depressive subjects were 27 outpatients. All of them were diagnosed according to DSM-III-R criteria. Controls were 27 normal subjects. The amplitudes of electrodermal responses and the basal levels were recorded during a stimuli series of 15 80-dB tones and of 1 100-dB tone in the 11th trial. The depressive patients displayed lower basal conductance levels and lower conductance amplitudes in orienting responses to the first stimulus and to stimulus change. No differences were found in conductance response amplitudes of stimuli series, although a tendency towards smaller conductance amplitudes in depressive patients was observed before stimulus change. A trend towards habituation was detected in both groups, but no differences between them were present, neither the habituation velocity of depressives was found to be unlike normals. Our results display lower responsivity in depressive patients, which reflects alterations in the sensitization process.
authors.affiliation: Psychobiology Area, Jaume I University of Castellón, University of Valencia, Spain.miquel@psb.uji.es
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Miquel
authors.forename: I
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Fuentes
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Garcia-Merita
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Rojo
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000704:Analysis of Variance; D001143:Arousal / Q000502:physiology; D003866:Depressive Disorder / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000523:psychology*; D005260:Female; D005712:Galvanic Skin Response; D006185:Habituation, Psychophysiologic; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D012095:Repression-Sensitization