CLINICAL PREDICTORS OF SOMATIC AND PSYCHOLOGICAL SYMPTOMS OF DEPRESSION IN ALZHEIMERS-DISEASE

The Hamilton Rating Scale for Depression was employed to assess the se verity of somatic and psychological symptoms of depression in 42 outpa tients with dementia of the Alzheimer type. The severity of somatic sy mptoms increased in the more severe stages of dementia whereas the sev erity of psychological symptoms did not vary. Psychological symptoms w ere more severe in female patients and in patients with a better aware ness of cognitive decline, In contrast, the degree of cognitive dysfun ction was the only significant predictor of the severity of somatic sy mptoms. These results suggest that, in Alzheimer's disease, somatic sy mptoms are secondary to dementia rather than manifestations of a coexi stent depressive disorder and point to the limited value of the Hamilt on scale for detecting depression in demented patients.