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The Upper Bavarian longitudinal community study 1975–2004. 2. Long-term course and outcome of depression

A controlled study

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European Archives of Psychiatry and Clinical Neuroscience Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Objective

The study describes course and outcome over 25 years in depressed and non-depressed men and women from a large community study. Outcome measures covered psychopathology, disability, and impaired functioning.

Method

A depressive syndrome (depressed mood and three additional depressive symptoms) was defined and compared to a control condition without depressive symptoms in the seven days preceding baseline assessment. Assessments focused on three time points: baseline survey, 5-year follow-up, and 25-year follow-up. Self-rating scales as well as expert-rating interviews yielded data on a wide range of social and psychopathological risk factors and outcome measures.

Results

Among participants of all three waves (N = 838), the baseline prevalence for depressive syndrome was 18.1%. Depressive symptoms manifest at the first wave had substantial impact over the 25-year study. Subjects with a depressive syndrome were predisposed for later adverse mental health outcomes, more disability in social domains and reduced functionality. No long-term increase or decrease of the prevalence of the depressive syndrome was observed.

Conclusion

There is a persistent and long lasting impact of depressive syndrome, irrespective of diagnostic status, in the general population. Our results underscore the importance of sub-syndromal depressive syndrome when estimating the risk of future mental disorders and functional impairment in the long-term.

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Acknowledgments

This research was funded by the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft, Bonn, grant number Fi 333/4-1. We especially thank Dipl.-Psych. Eva Bolz, Dipl.-Psych. Helen Castellanos, Dipl.-Psych. Andrea Dusold, Dipl.-Psych. Andreas Hampel, Dr. Gabriele Kohlböck, Dipl.-Psych. Birgit Schaider, Dipl.-Psych. Nicole Sevignani and Dipl.-Psych. Nadia Sosnowsky for their sensitive way of conducting interviews with the subjects, and Susanne Hedlund (Ph.D.) for her support in formulating this manuscript.

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Correspondence to Manfred M. Fichter MD, Dipl-Psych.

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Fichter, M.M., Kohlboeck, G. & Quadflieg, N. The Upper Bavarian longitudinal community study 1975–2004. 2. Long-term course and outcome of depression. Eur Arch Psychiatry Clin Neurosc 258, 476–488 (2008). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00406-008-0821-z

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