Personality changes during antidepressant treatment.
OBJECTIVE
We have investigated the changes of Temperament and Character Inventory (TCI) dimensions of personality in outpatients during 6 months of antidepressant treatment.


METHODS
30 outpatients were treated for mild or moderate depressive episode, current mild or moderate episode of reccurent depressive disorder or mixed anxiety and depressive disorder (ICD-10). The intensity of depression was assessed by the Montgomery-Asberg Depression Rating Scale (MADRS) at the beginning of treatment and then after the 1st, 3rd and 6th month of treatment. The TCI dimensions were assessed by the Temperament and Character Inventory-Revised (TCI-R) at the same time periods as the MADRS. The mean scores of the TCI-R dimensions and MADRS were processed by Wilcoxon pair test.


RESULTS
We have observed a significant decrease in harm avoidance (HA) score after 6 months of treatment (p<0.05), between the 1st and 6th month (p<0.05), between the 3rd and 6th month, (p=0.033), significant increase in persistance (P) between the 1st and 6th month (p<0.05) and a significant decrease in self-transcendence (ST) score after 3 months (p<0.05) and after 6 months (p<0.05). In the MADRS total score we have observed a significant decrease after the 1st (p<0.001), 3rd (p<0.001) and also 6th month (p<0.001).


CONCLUSIONS
Our findings showed changes of personality dimensions HA, P and ST in outpatients during antidepressant treatment.
Hruby
Radovan
R
Clinic of Psychiatry, Jessenius Faculty of Medicine, Martin, Slovak Republic. Radovan.Hruby@jfmed.uniba.sk
Nosalova
Gabriela
G
Ondrejka
Igor
I
Preiss
Marek
M
D018759:Adrenergic Uptake Inhibitors / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D000328:Adult; D018687:Antidepressive Agents, Second-Generation / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D001008:Anxiety Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000523:psychology; D002605:Character; D015897:Comorbidity; D003866:Depressive Disorder / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000523:psychology*; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010555:Personality Inventory / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D011594:Psychometrics; D012008:Recurrence; D017367:Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D013694:Temperament / Q000187:drug effects*
D018759:Adrenergic Uptake Inhibitors; D018687:Antidepressive Agents, Second-Generation; D017367:Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors