Maes M H, De Ruyter M, Suy E
Biol Psychiatry. 1987 Feb;22(2):177-88. doi: 10.1016/0006-3223(87)90228-9.
The score on the Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (HDRS), the L-tryptophan:competing amino acid (valine + leucine) (L-TRP:CAA) ratio, and the 3-methoxy-4-hydroxyphenylglycol (MHPG) flow in 24-hr urine were recorded in 83 depressed patients undergoing a Dexamethasone Suppression Test (DST). The subjects were diagnostically subdivided according to DSM-III into minor depression (296.82, 300.40, 309.00), major depression without melancholia (296.X2), with melancholia (296.X3), or with psychotic features (296.X4). Minor depression, major depression with melancholia, and major depression with psychotic features can be regarded as distinct biological entities. Major depression without melancholia is a heterogeneous group with reference to the biological markers. By combining these biological data with age in a discriminant function analysis, 81.9% of all depressed patients can be correctly classified into minor or major depression groups. The combined biological markers can also be used to predict the severity of the depression; 42.5% of the variance in the HDRS score is accounted for by multiple regression on the biological figures. Multivariate statistical techniques considerably improve prediction for both subtype and severity of depression.
对83名接受地塞米松抑制试验（DST）的抑郁症患者记录了汉密尔顿抑郁量表（HDRS）评分、L-色氨酸与竞争性氨基酸（缬氨酸+亮氨酸）（L-TRP:CAA）的比值以及24小时尿中3-甲氧基-4-羟基苯乙二醇（MHPG）的排出量。根据《精神疾病诊断与统计手册》第三版（DSM-III），将受试者诊断细分为轻度抑郁症（296.82、300.40、309.00）、无抑郁发作的重度抑郁症（296.X2）、有抑郁发作的重度抑郁症（296.X3）或有精神病性特征的重度抑郁症（296.X4）。轻度抑郁症、有抑郁发作的重度抑郁症和有精神病性特征的重度抑郁症可被视为不同的生物学实体。无抑郁发作的重度抑郁症在生物学标志物方面是一个异质性群体。通过在判别函数分析中将这些生物学数据与年龄相结合，所有抑郁症患者中有81.9%可被正确分类为轻度或重度抑郁症组。联合生物学标志物还可用于预测抑郁症的严重程度；HDRS评分中42.5%的变异可通过对生物学指标的多元回归来解释。多变量统计技术显著改善了对抑郁症亚型和严重程度的预测。
