Depression Disease Summary

Overview

Depression is defined as a mood state indicating the absence of a positive affect. It is further defined in the Introduction section.

Depression has affected an estimated 5% of adults worldwide. A more detailed discussion on the prevalence of depression can be found in the Epidemiology section.

Multiple factors affect a person’s mood state. Effects of neurotransmitter level changes in the brain and its role in mood regulation in depression is said to be one of the factors and is discussed in the Pathophysiology section.

The Risk Factors section discusses the interaction of the different factors that predispose patients to depression such as life events and biological factors.

History and Physical Examination

The Clinical Presentation and History sections enumerate the signs and symptoms of depression that will aid in properly diagnosing depression.

Diagnosis

The DSM-5 diagnostic criteria is the main tool used in diagnosing depression. This criteria and other assessment tools are in the Diagnosis or Diagnostic Criteria section.

The psychiatric and general medical disorders that can overlap with the signs and symptoms of depression are enumerated in the Differential Diagnosis section.

Management

The goals of treatment and factors to consider in choosing a treatment modality (eg psychotherapy, pharmacologic therapy, neurostimulation therapy, etc) to be in a patient with depression are listed in the Principles of Therapy section.

Various therapeutic agents that can be used in the management of depression are in the Pharmacological Therapy section. Some examples include selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs), noradrenaline reuptake inhibitor (NRI), and serotonin and norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors (SNRIs).  

Supportive care and the different types of psychotherapy, neurostimulation therapy and chronotherapy that can be employed in patients with depression are discussed in detail in the Nonpharmacological section.

Patient monitoring is an important part of the management of depression. Frequency of follow up and monitoring of patients with depression is discussed in the Monitoring section.