Mersch P P, Middendorp H M, Bouhuys A L, Beersma D G, van den Hoofdakker R H
Department of Biological Psychiatry, University Hospital Groningen, The Netherlands.
J Affect Disord. 1999 Apr;53(1):35-48. doi: 10.1016/s0165-0327(98)00097-4.
The aim of the study is to investigate the relationship between the prevalence of SAD and latitude.
An overview of the epidemiological literature on the prevalence of SAD is given and studies relevant for the latitudinal dependency of prevalence will be analyzed and discussed.
The mean prevalence of SAD is two times higher in North America compared to Europe. Over all prevalence studies, the correlation between prevalence and latitude was not significant. A significant positive correlation was found between prevalence and latitude in North America. For Europe there was a trend in the same direction.
The influence of latitude on prevalence seems to be small and other factors like climate, genetic vulnerability and social-cultural context can be expected to play a more important role. Additional controlled studies taking these factors into account are necessary to identify their influence.
本研究的目的是调查季节性情感障碍（SAD）的患病率与纬度之间的关系。
给出了关于SAD患病率的流行病学文献综述，并将分析和讨论与患病率的纬度依赖性相关的研究。
与欧洲相比，北美的SAD平均患病率高出两倍。在所有患病率研究中，患病率与纬度之间的相关性不显著。在北美，患病率与纬度之间存在显著的正相关。在欧洲也有相同方向的趋势。
纬度对患病率的影响似乎较小，预计气候、遗传易感性和社会文化背景等其他因素将发挥更重要的作用。有必要进行更多考虑这些因素的对照研究，以确定它们的影响。
Zotero 插件