title: Depression during an acute episode of schizophrenia or schizophreniform disorder and its impact on treatment response.
abstract: The aim of the present study was to examine the relevance of depressive symptoms during an acute schizophrenic episode for the prediction of treatment response. Two hundred inpatients who fulfilled DSM-IV criteria for schizophrenia or schizophreniform disorders were assessed at hospital admission and after 6 weeks of inpatient treatment using the Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS) and the Hamilton Rating Scale for Depression (HAM-D). Depressive symptoms showed positive correlations with both positive and negative symptoms at admission and after 6 weeks, and decreased during 6 weeks of treatment. Pronounced depressive symptoms (HAM-D score> or =16) were found in 28% of the sample at admission and in 9% after 6 weeks of treatment. Depressive symptoms at admission predicted a greater improvement of positive and negative symptoms over 6 weeks of treatment, but also more, rather than fewer remaining symptoms after 6 weeks. Both results, however, lost statistical significance when analyses were controlled for the influence of positive and negative symptoms at admission. Therefore, the hypothesis that depressive symptoms are predictive of a favorable treatment response was not supported by the present study.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry, Ludwig-Maximilians University, Munich, Germany. Markus.Jaeger@bkh-guenzburg.de <Markus.Jaeger@bkh-guenzburg.de>
authors.forename: Markus
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Jäger
authors.forename: Michael
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Riedel
authors.forename: Max
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Schmauss
authors.forename: Herbert
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Pfeiffer
authors.forename: Gerd
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Laux
authors.forename: Dieter
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Naber
authors.forename: Wolfgang
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Gaebel
authors.forename: Wolfgang
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Huff
authors.forename: Lutz G
authors.initials: LG
authors.lastname: Schmidt
authors.forename: Isabella
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Heuser
authors.forename: Gerhard
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Buchkremer
authors.forename: Kai-Uwe
authors.initials: KU
authors.lastname: Kühn
authors.forename: Eckart
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Rüther
authors.forename: Paul
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Hoff
authors.forename: Markus
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Gastpar
authors.forename: Ronald
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Bottlender
authors.forename: Anton
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Strauss
authors.forename: Hans-Jürgen
authors.initials: HJ
authors.lastname: Möller
mesh_terms: D000208:Acute Disease; D000328:Adult; D014150:Antipsychotic Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use; D015897:Comorbidity; D003866:Depressive Disorder / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology*; D003865:Major Depressive Disorder / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology; D039721:Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006760:Hospitalization / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D010343:Patient Admission / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D011336:Probability; D011569:Psychiatric Status Rating Scales / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D011618:Psychotic Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000453:epidemiology*; D011619:Psychotropic Drugs / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D012559:Schizophrenia / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000453:epidemiology; D012565:Schizophrenic Psychology; D016896:Treatment Outcome
chemical_list: D014150:Antipsychotic Agents; D011619:Psychotropic Drugs