Gender and the course of major depressive disorder through adolescence in clinically referred youngsters.

OBJECTIVES

To determine whether there are gender differences among psychiatrically referred young patients in the presenting features and subsequent course of major depressive disorder (MDD) through adolescence.

METHOD

The subjects were 92 participants in a longitudinal follow-up study that included repeated standardized psychiatric evaluations. Gender effects were examined on features of MDD as patients progressed from late childhood (mean age 11 years) to late adolescence (mean age 17 years).

RESULTS

Salient features of MDD did not differ for girls versus boys, including age at MDD onset, recovery from the index episode, risk of a new episode, and rates of various comorbid disorders in the index and recurrent episodes. Rates of selected symptoms and severity of the depressive syndrome also were comparable for boys and girls throughout their development.

CONCLUSIONS

Gender differences have been documented in epidemiological and community samples with respect to rates and correlates of depressed mood and some features of depressive disorders. However, the study of gender differences among clinically referred depressed youths has only recently gained momentum. The present findings complement existing reports suggesting a lack of compelling gender effects on salient presenting features and adolescent outcomes of MDD in clinically referred youths. Additional work is needed to determine whether gender effects are detectable on other clinical parameters of MDD during adolescence or further along in development.