Prevalence and clinical correlation study of impaired glucose tolerance in major depressive disorder patients

Aims: To find the prevalence of glycemic impairment during the first visit of patients diagnosed with major depressive disorders (MDDs). To identify whether subjects with glycemic impairment have more depression at baseline. To see whether final depression outcome is influenced by baseline glycemic control status. Subjects and Methods: The study was conducted in the Department of Psychiatry, Institute of Postgraduate Medical Education and Research, Kolkata with the collaboration of Department of Biochemistry, Bangur Institute of Neurosciences, Kolkata. This is a hospital-based cohort study. One hundred and two eligible MDD patients were selected as per inclusion and exclusion criteria. Fasting blood sugar, postprandial blood sugar, glycated hemoglobin (HbA1C), etc., were estimated and depression rating scale was applied on them at the first visit. These participants were again evaluated by depression rating scale after 3 months treatment of depression and blood was collected for HbA1C estimation. Statistical analysis was done with the help of (IBM) Statistical Package for Social Science-13. Results: Sixteen percentage patients had impaired glucose tolerance test. The baseline depression score was <13 for 6 percent, and ≥18 for 78 percent of the participating subjects. After 3 months of treatment, the score was <13 for 20 percent and ≥18 for 35 percent. The baseline depression score was found to be a strong predictor of prognosis even after controlling for all the indicators of glucose metabolism. Conclusions: Persons having similar depression level at presentation had a better prognosis if they had good glycemic control at baseline.