The Diagnostic Apathia Scale predicts a dose-remission relationship of T-PEMF in treatment-resistant depression.

Objective: The aim of this study was to evaluate the predictive validity of the apathy subsyndrome in patients with therapy-resistant depression in the dose-remission study with transcranial pulsating electromagnetic fields (T-PEMF).

Methods: The apathy subsyndrome consists of the symptoms of fatigue, concentration and memory problems, lack of interests, difficulties in making decisions, and sleep problems. We evaluated 65 patients with therapy-resistant depression.

Psychometric analysis of the Melancholia Scale in trials with non-pharmacological augmentation of patients with therapy-resistant depression.

Objective: The Melancholia Scale (MES) consists of the psychic core items of the Hamilton Depression Scale (HAM-D6) (depressed mood, interests, psychic anxiety, general somatic, guilt feelings, and psychomotor retardation) and the neuropsychiatric items of the Cronholm-Ottossen Depression Scale. Patients resistant to anti-depressant medication (therapy-resistant depression) have participated in our trials with non-pharmacological augmentation. On the basis of these trials, we have evaluated to what extent the neuropsychiatric subscale of the MES (concentration difficulties, fatigability, emotional introversion, sleep problems, and decreased verbal communication) is a measure of severity of apathia when compared with the HAM-D6 subscale of the MES.

The lack of sustained effect of bright light, after discontinuation, in non-seasonal major depression.

Background: Recently accumulated evidence has demonstrated that bright-light therapy in combination with antidepressants is effective in patients with non-seasonal major depression. Whether bright light has a sustained effect after discontinuation is, however, poorly investigated.

Method: In this double-blind randomized study we report the results from a 4-week follow-up period in patients with major non-seasonal depression who had been treated for 5 weeks with sertraline combined with bright-light therapy or sertraline combined with dim-light therapy.