DO PSYCHOSOCIAL FACTORS INFLUENCE OUTCOME IN SEVERELY DEPRESSED FEMALE PSYCHIATRIC-INPATIENTS

Fifty-nine women admitted to hospital because of severe depression wer e studied prospectively during hospital admission and nine months foll owing hospital discharge in order to identify psychosocial and illness factors associated with prognosis. Outcome was measured in terms of b oth depression scores and recovery at the time of follow-up. In keepin g with the findings of other studies, the outcome was often poor, with only 54% having recovered nine months after discharge, poorer outcome being associated with more negative self-esteem measured when the wom en were depressed and with suicidal ideas. The findings indicate that in severely depressed women likely to be admitted to hospital, psychos ocial factors may have less relevance to outcome, at least in the shor t term, than in less severely depressed patients studied in community or out-patient samples.