Anxious and non-anxious forms of major depression: familial, personality and symptom characteristics

Abstract

Anxious depression is a more severe form of depression than the non-anxious form; this is true even when the symptoms required for an anxiety diagnosis are ignored. Patients with non-anxious depression are different from those with anxious depression in terms of illness severity, family pathology and personality. The association between major depression and bipolar disorder is seen only in anxious forms of depression. Improved knowledge on different forms of depression may provide clues to their differential aetiology, and guide research into the types of treatment that are best suited to each form.

Anxious Forms of Depression

“…[38] Where Cloninger's personality variants are concerned, although nonanxious depressives were no more harm-avoidant than controls, the anxious depressives were more likely to be harmavoidant. [38] [38] …”

“…Anxious forms of depression not only have a worse outlook than nonanxious forms and are more resistant to treatments, [10] but are also more likely to have more severe depressive symptoms, such as weight loss, thoughts of guilt and worthlessness, suicidal thoughts, and thoughts of death. [38] Where Cloninger's personality variants are concerned, although nonanxious depressives were no more harm-avoidant than controls, the anxious depressives were more likely to be harmavoidant. The same study also showed that the parents of anxious depressives had a much wider range of anxiety and depressive disorders (including mania), whereas nonanxious depressives only had an excess of major depression among their parents, including depression with another anxiety disorder (excluding GAD).…”

“…The same study also showed that the parents of anxious depressives had a much wider range of anxiety and depressive disorders (including mania), whereas nonanxious depressives only had an excess of major depression among their parents, including depression with another anxiety disorder (excluding GAD). [38]…”

The central importance of anxiety in common mental disorders

“…A later family study showed that anxious depressives were more likely to have alcohol abuse, anxious personality and dramatic personality than pure depressives or controls, and were also much more likely to be diagnosed with alcohol abuse (Reich, 1993). Finally, anxious and non-anxious depressions have different personality characteristics: anxious depressives are more likely to be harm avoidant and less likely to be novelty-seeking than controls, while non-anxious depression are no more harm avoidant than controls, but are more likely to have a high value for novelty seeking (Goldberg et al, 2013). early morning waking, weight loss, psychomotor retardation, diurnal variation of mood and guilt).…”

“…A related study showed that when depression was associated with symptoms of panic, relatives were more than twice as likely to have major depression, panic disorder, phobia and/or alcoholism than the relatives of probands with major depression without any anxiety disorder (Leckman et al, 1983b). Goldberg et al (2013) have shown that the severity of anxious forms of depression is not entirely due to the presence of the additional anxious symptoms, since, even if these are discounted, the symptoms of depression are more likely to be particularly severe (e.g. Goldberg et al (2013) have shown that the severity of anxious forms of depression is not entirely due to the presence of the additional anxious symptoms, since, even if these are discounted, the symptoms of depression are more likely to be particularly severe (e.g.…”