PSYCHIATRIC-DISORDERS IN THE RELATIVES OF DEPRESSED PROBANDS .1. COMPARISON OF PREPUBERTAL, ADOLESCENT AND EARLY ADULT-ONSET CASES

Research with adults suggests that early onset of depression is associ ated with increased rates of depression among relatives. This paper pr esents results of a family study that tested the hypothesis that prepu bertal depression was associated with a greater familial loading of de pression than the postpubertal form, which in rum had a greater famili al loading than adult onset depression, Probands were from a child to adult longitudinal study, Psychiatric disorders among relatives were a ssessed with family interview and family history methods 'blind' to al l findings regarding the proband, Contrary to expectation, familial ra tes of depression did not differ significantly between the groups, How ever, manic disorders tended to be more common among the relatives of postpubertal depressed cases than among the relatives of adult onset c ases, Moreover, relatives of prepubertal depressed subjects had higher rates of criminality and family discord than postpubertal subjects. p repubertal onset depressive disorders appear to be relatively distinct from postpubertal forms. (C) 1997 Elsevier Science B.V.