title: A study of remitted and treatment-resistant depression using MMPI and including pessimism and optimism scales.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  The psychological aspects of treatment-resistant and remitted depression are not well documented.
  
  
  METHODS
  We administered the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI) to patients with treatment-resistant depression (n = 34), remitted depression (n = 25), acute depression (n = 21), and healthy controls (n = 64). Pessimism and optimism were also evaluated by MMPI.
  
  
  RESULTS
  ANOVA and post-hoc tests demonstrated that patients with treatment-resistant and acute depression showed similarly high scores for frequent scale (F), hypochondriasis, depression, conversion hysteria, psychopathic device, paranoia, psychasthenia and schizophrenia on the MMPI compared with normal controls. Patients with treatment-resistant depression, but not acute depression registered high on the scale for cannot say answer. Using Student's t-test, patients with remitted depression registered higher on depression and social introversion scales, compared with normal controls. For pessimism and optimism, patients with treatment-resistant depression demonstrated similar changes to acutely depressed patients. Remitted depression patients showed lower optimism than normal controls by Student's t-test, even though these patients were deemed recovered from depression using HAM-D.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The patients with remitted depression and treatment-resistant depression showed subtle alterations on the MMPI, which may explain the hidden psychological features in these cohorts.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry, Teikyo University Chiba Medical Center, Ichihara, Japan.
authors.forename: Masatoshi
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Suzuki
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry, Teikyo University Chiba Medical Center, Ichihara, Japan.
authors.forename: Michio
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Takahashi
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry, Teikyo University Chiba Medical Center, Ichihara, Japan.
authors.forename: Katsumasa
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Muneoka
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry, Teikyo University Chiba Medical Center, Ichihara, Japan.
authors.forename: Koichi
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Sato
authors.affiliation: Division of Clinical Neuroscience, Chiba University Center for Forensic Mental Health, Chiba, Japan.
authors.forename: Kenji
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Hashimoto
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry, Teikyo University Chiba Medical Center, Ichihara, Japan.
authors.forename: Yukihiko
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Shirayama
mesh_terms: D015331:Cohort Studies; D061218:Depressive Disorder, Treatment-Resistant / Q000523:psychology*; D006801:Humans; D000067656:Optimism / Q000523:psychology*; D010555:Personality Inventory; D000067657:Pessimism / Q000523:psychology*