April 1, 2004Archives of General Psychiatry
Psychosocial Disability Before, During, and After a Major DepressiveEpisode
Why the study?
Does a major depressive episode cause persistent psychosocial disability (scar effect) beyond recovery compared to premorbid levels?
Population
4,796 respondents from a prospective Dutch psychiatric population-based survey, including 216 with a first…
Comparison
Major depressive episode (first or recurrent) vs Never-MDE individuals and premorbid functioning
Design
Cohort
Follow-up
3 years (1996 to 1999)
Authors
Discussion
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Member takes
Implication
Supports premorbid trait vulnerability over scarring in first-MDE disability; leaves open prospective confirmation before changing assessment practices.
Structured PICO
Does a major depressive episode cause persistent psychosocial disability (scar effect) beyond recovery compared to premorbid levels?
P
Population
4,796 respondents from a prospective Dutch psychiatric population-based survey (NEMESIS), including 216 with a first major depressive episode (MDE) and 118 with a recurrent MDE.
I
Intervention
Major depressive episode (first or recurrent)
C
Comparator
Never-MDE individuals (between-subject) and premorbid functioning (within-subject)
O
Outcome
Psychosocial functioning across work, housekeeping, spouse/partner, and leisure-time domainspatient reported
Postmorbid psychosocial disability in depression largely reflects the continuation of premorbid trait vulnerability rather than a permanent 'scar' from the depressive episode itself.
Cite This Study
Ormel et al. (2004) studied this question.