1/4 Of Depression Diagnoses Not Really Depression

A study of more than 8000 patients published in the Archives of General Psychiatry suggests that many cases of major depression are actually false positives, normal but temporary responses to life events such as death or divorce.

Researchers surveyed the patients on symptoms related to mood disorders and any events which may have triggered the symptoms. Two-hundred and thirty patients reported experiencing these symptoms following the death of a loved one, loss of job or a breakup. The symptoms they reported, including thoughts of suicide and loss of appetite, were almost identical to major depression making the diagnosis easy to mistake.

While the current Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-IV) excludes bereavement-related sadness in its qualification of major depressive disorders, researchers now argue for a re-drawing of guidelines to specifically exclude "complicated reactions" related to life losses.

Read more: Many Diagnoses of Depression May Be Misguided, Study Says

ABSTRACT: Extending the Bereavement Exclusion for Major Depression to Other Losses