Prevalence, clinical features and prescription patterns of psychotropic medications for patients with psychotic depression in China

Association of clinical variables and thyroid-stimulating hormone with psychotic symptoms in patients with first-episode and drug-naïve major depressive disorder with elevated fasting blood glucose: preliminary exploratory study with a large sample

BACKGROUND

Psychotic symptoms and elevated fasting blood glucose (FBG) are frequently observed in people with major depressive disorder (MDD), but there is a lack of research into this relationship within this cohort.

AIMS

This study aimed to preliminarily explore the prevalence of psychotic symptoms and their predictors among patients with MDD and elevated FBG.

METHOD

This study enrolled 1718 patients with first-episode and drug-naïve (FEDN) MDD. Sociodemographic data and physical and biochemical indicators were collected. Clinical symptoms were assessed with tools such as the Hamilton Rating Scale for Anxiety, Hamilton Rating Scale for Depression (HRSD) and Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale positive subscale.

RESULTS

The odds ratio for psychotic symptoms in those with MDD and elevated FBG (18.7%) was 2.33 times higher than those with MDD without elevated FBG. Presence of psychotic symptoms was significantly correlated with HRSD score, suicide attempts, and total cholesterol and thyroid-stimulating hormone levels. The combination of HRSD score, suicide attempts and thyroid-stimulating hormone levels among patients with MDD and elevated FBG effectively distinguished between individuals with and without psychotic symptoms, achieving an area under the curve of 0.87.

CONCLUSIONS

Psychotic symptoms are frequently observed among FEDN MDD patients with elevated FBG, and depressive symptoms, suicide attempts and thyroid-stimulating hormone levels are related to psychotic symptoms in this cohort.

The influence of gender-specific factors influencing severe anxiety in psychotic major depression: role of thyroid hormones and depression severity

BACKGROUND

Psychotic major depression (PMD) is characterized by major depressive disorder (MDD) accompanied by delusions or hallucinations. While the prevalence of PMD and its association with anxiety have been studied, gender-specific differences and the role of thyroid hormones in PMD-related anxiety remain less explored.

METHODS

A total of 1718 first-episode and drug-naïve MDD patients was assessed for the presence of PMD and severe anxiety. Clinical assessments, including Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (HAMD), Hamilton Anxiety Rating Scale (HAMA), Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS), and Clinical Global Impressions-Severity (CGI-S) scale, were conducted to assess depression, anxiety, psychotic symptoms, and clinical severity, respectively. Blood samples were collected to measure thyroid function parameters.

RESULTS

The prevalence of severe anxiety was higher in PMD patients compared to non-psychotic MDD patients (71.3% vs. 5.3%). No significant gender differences were observed in the prevalence of severe anxiety among PMD patients. However, elevated thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH) levels and increased depression severity (HAMD scores) were identified as independent risk factors for severe anxiety in female PMD patients. In contrast, no significant risk factors were found in male PMD patients. The area under the receiver operating characteristic (AUCROC) analysis revealed that the HAMD score and TSH level showed acceptable discriminatory capacity for distinguishing between female PMD patients with and without severe anxiety.

CONCLUSION

This study highlights the heightened prevalence of severe anxiety in PMD patients, with TSH levels and depression severity emerging as gender-specific risk factors for anxiety in females. These findings suggest the importance of thyroid hormone assessment and tailored interventions for managing anxiety in female PMD patients.

Prevalence and risk factors for psychotic symptoms in young, first-episode and drug-naïve patients with major depressive disorder

BACKGROUND

Major depressive disorder (MDD) is a common psychiatric disorder worldwide. Psychotic depression has been reported to be frequently under-diagnosed due to poor recognition of psychotic features. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to reveal the rate and risk factors of psychotic symptoms in young, drug-naïve patients with major depressive disorder at the time of their first episode.

METHODS

A total of 917 patients were recruited and divided into psychotic and non-psychotic subgroups based on the Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS) positive subscale score. Anxiety symptoms and depressive symptoms were measured by the Hamilton Anxiety Rating Scale (HAMA) and the 17-item Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (HAMD-17), respectively. Several biochemical indicators such as total cholesterol (TC), triglycerides (TG), high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C), low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C), fasting blood glucose (FBG), thyroid stimulating hormone (TSH), free triiodothyronine (FT3), and free thyroxine (FT4) were also measured.

RESULTS

The rate of psychotic symptoms among young adult MDD patients was 9.1%. There were significant differences in TSH (p<0.001), FBG (p<0.001), TC (p<0.0001), TG (p = 0.001), HDL-C (p = 0.049), LDL-C (p = 0.010), diastolic blood pressure (DP) (p<0.001), systolic blood pressure (SP) (p<0.001), and HAMD total score (p<0.001) between young MDD patients with and without psychotic depression. HAMD, TSH, TC, and severe anxiety were independently associated with psychotic symptoms in young adult MDD patients. In addition, among young MDD patients, the rate of suicide attempts in the psychotic subgroup was much higher than in the non-psychotic subgroup (45.8% vs. 16.9%).

CONCLUSIONS

Our findings suggest that psychotic symptoms are common in young MDD patients. Several clinical variables and biochemical indicators are associated with the occurrence of psychotic symptoms in young MDD patients.

Prevalence and risk factors of suicide attempts in young, first-episode and drug-naïve Chinese Han outpatients with psychotic major depressive disorder

This study investigates the relationship between psychotic symptoms and suicide attempts in young first-episode, drug-naive Chinese Han outpatients diagnosed with Major Depressive Disorder (MDD). The prevalence of Psychotic Major Depressive Disorder (PMD) was found to be 8.3% among the enrolled MDD patients. The study assessed 1289 participants using various scales to evaluate the severity of clinical symptoms, including the CGI-S, the HAMD, the HAMA, and the PANSS positive subscale. Additionally, thyroid hormone and glucolipid metabolism indicators were examined. The findings indicate that among patients with PMD, 41.12% had recent suicide attempts, while 6.54% had previous suicide attempts. Patients who recently attempted suicide exhibited higher scores on the HAMA and CGI scales, along with elevated serum levels of Thyroid-Stimulating Hormone (TSH) and total cholesterol (TC), as well as higher systolic and diastolic blood pressure. Notably, TSH levels independently correlated with recent suicide attempts in PMD patients, with an impressive area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUROC) of 0.923. Furthermore, the subgroup of patients with previous suicide attempts displayed longer illness duration and higher HAMD scores. Duration of illness and HAMD were found to be independently associated with previous suicide attempts among PMD patients, with a combined predictive effect showing a robust AUROC of 0.910. In conclusion, this study highlights the significant prevalence of recent and previous suicide attempts among young Chinese Han outpatients with PMD. The identification of risk factors, especially the link between TSH levels and recent suicide attempts, offers valuable insights for clinicians to develop targeted interventions and preventive strategies for this vulnerable patient population.

Association between thyroid hormones and comorbid psychotic symptoms in patients with first-episode and drug-naïve major depressive disorder

Thyroid dysfunction is common in major depressive disorder (MDD) patients; however, its relationship with psychotic depression (PD) remains unclear. We aimed to assess thyroid hormones in 1718 first episode drug naïve (FEND) MDD patients and to determine their association with PD. The positive subscale of the Positive and Negative Symptom Scale (PANSS-P), Hamilton Anxiety Rating Scale (HAMA), and Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (HAMD) were used to detect clinical symptoms. The serum levels of free triiodothyronine (FT3), free thyroxine (FT4), thyroid stimulating hormone (TSH), anti-thyroglobulin (TgAb), and thyroid peroxidases antibody (TPOAb) were assessed. The logistic regression model was conducted to determine risk factors for PD, and the Area Under the Curve (AUC) was used to test the performance of this model. 171 (10%) patients were identified as having PD. Serum levels of TSH, TgAb, and TPOAb displayed small-to-moderate associations with PANSS-P. HAMA score, HAMD score, and TSH levels were independently associated with PD. The regression model had excellent power to distinguish PD patients from non-PD patients with an AUC value of 0.93. Our study suggests TSH levels and severity of depression and anxiety symptoms were independent risk factors for PD. Regular thyroid function tests may help early detect PD.