Hostname: page-component-8448b6f56d-sxzjt Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-04-20T16:35:19.562Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Delusional Depressive In-Patients, 1892 to 1982

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  29 January 2018

John M. Eagles
John M. Eagles*
Affiliation:
University Medical Buildings, Foresterhill, Aberdeen AB9 2ZD; Royal Edinburgh Hospital
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Summary

Three groups of 114 depressed patients admitted to hospital in Edinburgh, one in the year 1892, one in 1942–3 and one in 1981–2, were studied. The occurrence and content of depressive delusions were recorded. A significantly higher proportion of depressives had delusions in 1892 than in 1942–3, but there was no significant decline between 1942–3 and 1981–2. It is concluded that this decline in the proportion of depressives having delusions since 1892 probably does not reflect a genuine decline in the prevalence of depressive illness with delusions. The content of delusions differs between the years and between the sexes, and these differences are discussed.

Type
Research Article
Information
The British Journal of Psychiatry , Volume 143 , Issue 6 , December 1983 , pp. 558 - 563
Copyright
Copyright © 1983 The Royal College of Psychiatrists 

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Callan, J. (1979) Is affective illness on the increase? Journal of the American Medical Association, 241, 545.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Eaton, W. W. & Kessler, L. G. (1981) Rates of symptoms of depression in a national sample. American Journal of Epidemiology, 114, 528–38.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Foulds, G. A., Caine, T. M. & Creasy, M. A. (1960) Aspects of extra- and intro-punitive expression in mental illness. Journal of Mental Science, 106, 599–610.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Friedman, C., de Moubray, M. S. & Hamilton, V. (1961) Imipramine in depressive states. Journal of Mental Science, 107, 948–53.Google ScholarPubMed
Glassman, A. H., Kantor, S. J. & Shostak, M. (1975) Depression, delusions and drug response. American Journal of Psychiatry, 132, 716–19.Google ScholarPubMed
Glassman, A. H. & Roose, S. T. (1981) Delusional depression—a distinct clinical entity? Archives of General Psychiatry, 38, 424–7.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Hagnell, O. (1966) A Prospective Study of the Incidence of Mental Disorder. Stockholm: Scandinavian University Books.Google Scholar
Hagnell, O., Lanke, J., Rorsman, B. & Ojesjo, L. (1982) Are we entering an age of melancholy? Depressive illnesses in a prospective epidemiological study over 25 years: the Lundby Study, Sweden. Psychological Medicine, 12, 279–89.Google Scholar
Jablensky, A., Sartorius, N., Gulbinat, W. & Emberg, G. (1981) Characteristics of depressive patients contacting psychiatric services in four cultures. Acta Psychiatrica Scandinavica, 63, 367–83.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Kantor, S. J. & Glassman, A. H. (1977) Delusional depressions: natural history and response to treatment. British Journal of Psychiatry, 131, 351–60.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Karagulla, S. (1950) Evaluation of ECT as compared with conservative methods of treatment in depressive states. Journal of Mental Science, 96, 1060–91.Google Scholar
Keir, D. (1966) The Third Statistical Account of Scotland. Volume 15: The City of Edinburgh. Glasgow: Blackie and Son.Google Scholar
Kendell, R. E. (1970) Relationship between aggression and depression. Archives of General Psychiatry, 22, 308–18.Google Scholar
Kendell, R. E. (1975) The Role of Diagnosis in Psychiatry. Oxford: Blackwell Scientific Publications.Google Scholar
Klaf, F. S. & Hamilton, J. G. (1961) Schizophrenia—a hundred years ago and today. Journal of Mental Science, 107, 819–27.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Kräupl Taylor, F. (1979) Psychopathology. Its Causes and Symptoms, Revised edition. Sunbury-on-Thames. Quartermaine House.Google Scholar
Lewis, A. J. (1936) Melancholia: prognostic and case material. Journal of Mental Science, 82, 488–558.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Lyketsos, G. C., Blackburn, I. M. & Tsiantis, J. (1978) The movement of hostility during recovery from depression. Psychological Medicine, 8, 145–9.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Meltzer, H. Y., Cho, H. W., Carroll, B. J. & Russo, P. (1976) Serum dopamine-β-hydroxylase activity in the affective psychoses and schizophrenia-decreased activity in unipolar psychotically depressed patients. Archives of General Psychiatry, 33, 585–91.Google Scholar
Murphy, H. B. M. (1978) The advent of guilt feelings as a common depressive symptom: a historical comparison on two continents. Psychiatry, 41, 229–42.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Saville, P. (1972) The British standardization of the 16PF Supplement of norms. Windsor: NFER Publishing Company.Google Scholar
Sweeney, D., Nelson, C., Bowers, M., Maas, J. & Heninger, G. (1978) Delusional versus non-delusional depression. Lancet, 2, 100–1.Google ScholarPubMed
Weissman, M. M. & Klerman, G. L. (1977) Sex differences and the epidemiology of depression. Archives of General Psychiatry, 34, 98–111.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Submit a response

eLetters

No eLetters have been published for this article.