Year: 2005
Type: review
Study designs: Systematic Review, Meta-Analysis
Abstract: BACKGROUND: There is conflicting evidence about the influence of personality disorder on outcome in depressive disorders. AIMS: Meta-analysis of studies in which a categorical assessment of personality disorder or no personality disorder was made in people with depressive disorders, and categorical outcome (recovered/not recovered) also determined. METHOD: Systematic electronic search of the literature for relevant publications. Hand searches of Journal of Affective Disorders and recent reviews, with subsequent meta-analysis of selected studies. RESULTS: Comorbid personality disorder with depression was associated with a doubling of the risk of a poor outcome for depression compared with no personality disorder (random effects model OR=2.18, 95% CI 1.70-2.80), a robust finding maintained with only Hamilton-type depression criteria at outcome (OR=2.20, 95% CI 1.61-3.01). All treatments apart from electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) showed this poor outcome, and the ECT group was small. CONCLUSIONS: Combined depression and personality disorder is associated with a poorer outcome than depression alone.
DOI: 10.1192/bjp.188.1.13
Authors: Giles Newton-Howes, Peter Tyrer, Tony Johnson
Institutions: MRC Biostatistics Unit, Imperial College London
Language: English
Subfield: Clinical Psychology
Field: Psychology
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: bronze
OpenAlex ID: W2137435000