An ethnographic study of the effects of cognitive symptoms in patients with major depressive disorder: the IMPACT study.

Background: The manifestation of major depressive disorder (MDD) may include cognitive symptoms that can precede the onset of MDD and persist beyond the resolution of acute depressive episodes. However, little is known about how cognitive symptoms are experienced by MDD patients and the people around them.

Methods: In this international (Brazil, Canada, China, France, and Germany) ethnographic study, we conducted semi-structured interviews and observations of remitted as well as symptomatic MDD patients (all patients self-reported being diagnosed by an HCP and self-reported being on an antidepressant) aged 18-60 years with self-reported cognitive symptoms (N = 34).

[Cognitive symptoms of depression--importance for treatment and prognosis].

Depression is often accompanied by cognitive disturbances, and by focusing on these deficits practitioners can obtain important information about the status of the disease and the prognosis of the patient. From this perspective, patients may also gain useful insight into their own condition. Medical and psychological treatment interventions can be applied on different levels particularly in relation to the cognitive symptoms of depression.