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City is presently engaged in a systematic diagnostic study of male admissions to the psychiatric inpatient service. Data are gathered by means of a structured psychiatric interview, which primarily reflects the diagnostic criteria for use in psychiatric research developed at Washington University. The present report describes the preliminary diagnostic findings from the first 120 subjects regarding differences between alcoholic and nonalcoholic inpatients. METHODA structured psychiatric interview, developed and tested by Twang,' was expanded for the present study to collect not only information relevant to the Washington University Diagnostic Criteria, but also other data possibly relevant to psychiatric illness.All psychiatric inpatient admissions were eligible for the study except: (I) female patients, (2) patients 65 and over, and/or (3) patients remaining on the inpatient service for fewer than four days. Patients meeting selection requirements were approached on the fourth hospital day, informed of the study, and, following signed consent. were administered the structured psychiatric interview by a trained technician. In the few cases in which subjects were too agitated to participate, the interview was postponed.Following data collection, the completed interview, without information identifying the subject, was given to two psychiatrists unaware of one another's psychiatric assessment. The psychiatrists made psychiatric diagnoses according to the Washington University Diagnostic Criteria' up to a maximum of three for any subject. Folkwing both diag-

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Unipolar depressives (n = 288) were subclassifìed according to family history. Depression spectrum patients (DSD; n = 104) were defined as those with first-degree relatives suffering from alcoholism. Familial pure depression patients (FPDD; n = 86) were those with only depression in the immediate family, and sporadic depressive patients (SDD; n = 98) had negative family histories. An analysis was performed using index symptoms, precipitating events, and premorbid personality features. A positive family history was associated with greater premorbid personality difficulties. This pattern was highlighted when each was compared to SDD. DSD and FPDD could not be differentiated from each other. The differences between them and SDD could not be explained by the differing age distribution. Overall, the premorbid and index symptom differences were not striking enough to be clinically useful.