title: Ethnic and migrational impact on the clinical manifestation of depression.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Depressive disorders are still underdiagnosed. Ethnic and cultural factors may influence the way depression is presented and therefore contribute to problems in assessing these disorders in different ethnic populations appropriately. In this investigation, the impact of both ethnicity and migration on the manifestation of depression was studied.
  
  
  METHODS
  Three groups of depressed female patients (n = 136) were included in this investigation on the variation in depressive symptomatology by ethnic groups. Group 1 consisted of Austrian patients living in Austria, group 2 were Turkish patients who had migrated to Austria and group 3 were Turkish patients living in Turkey. Participants were rated using the Montgomery-Åsberg Depression Rating Scale (MADRS), the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI), the Bradford Somatic Inventory (BSI) and an additional list of physical symptoms.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Both Turkish groups had significantly higher BSI scores and more somatic symptom severity. Migrated Turkish patients scored significantly higher in the items headache, backache and dry mouth than Turkish patients in Turkey. In addition, there were between-group differences in non-physical symptoms.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Depressive symptomatology varies between ethnic groups. These differences are mainly due to ethnicity as such but migration may play an additional role. It is essential for physicians to be aware of atypical presentation forms of depression in minority groups.
authors.affiliation: Department of General Psychiatry, Medical University Innsbruck, Anichstr. 35, 6020, Innsbruck, Austria. eberhard.deisenhammer@i-med.ac.at
authors.forename: Eberhard A
authors.initials: EA
authors.lastname: Deisenhammer
authors.forename: Müberra
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Coban-Başaran
authors.forename: Atıl
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Mantar
authors.forename: Regina
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Prunnlechner
authors.forename: Georg
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Kemmler
authors.forename: Tunç
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Alkın
authors.forename: Hartmann
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Hinterhuber
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D001317:Austria; D003466:Cultural Characteristics; D003866:Depressive Disorder / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000208:ethnology* / Q000503:physiopathology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007406:Interview, Psychological; D008875:Middle Aged; D013001:Somatoform Disorders / Q000208:ethnology / Q000503:physiopathology; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D014171:Transients and Migrants / Q000523:psychology*; D014421:Turkey / Q000208:ethnology; D055815:Young Adult