No pituitary gland volume change in medication-free depressed patients.
Increased serum cortisol levels and a hyperactive hypothalamo-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis have been proposed to play an important role in the pathophysiology of Major Depressive Disorder (MDD). However, there are inconsistent results regarding pituitary gland volume (PGV), which is one of the key elements of the HPA axis evaluated by MRI in depressed patients. In this study, we analyzed the PGV of medication-free moderately depressed MDD patients (N=34) and age and sex matched healthy controls (N=39). PGV did not differ between MDD patients and healthy controls [mean volume+/-S.D.; 0.76+/-0.17 cm3 and 0.75+/-0.14 cm3; ANCOVA, F1,69=1.25 p>0.05; respectively]. Our results confirm that volumetric PGV changes are not crucial for depression pathophysiology among unmedicated, moderately depressed adults.
Ege University, School of Medicine, Department of Psychiatry, Bornova, Izmir, Turkey.
Cagdas
C
Eker
Gulgun Yilmaz
GY
Ovali
Erol
E
Ozan
Ozlem Donat
OD
Eker
Omer
O
Kitis
Kerry
K
Coburn
Ali Saffet
AS
Gonul
D000328:Adult; D000704:Analysis of Variance; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D016009:Chi-Square Distribution; D003865:Major Depressive Disorder / Q000175:diagnosis*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging / Q000379:methods; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010902:Pituitary Gland / Q000473:pathology*