A STUDY OF P300 IN MELANCHOLIC DEPRESSION - CORRELATION WITH PSYCHOTIC FEATURES

The relationship between delusions and hallucinations (psychotic featu res) in melancholic depression and auditory P300 was studied. Forty pa tients with melancholic depression as per DSM-III-R were studied, 20 o f whom had hallucinations and/or delusions. The 20 patients of the two groups were individually marched on age, gender, sociodemographic var iables, and psychopathology (except for psychotic features). Auditory P300 obtained by the ''oddball paradigm'' showed that those with hallu cinations and/or delusions had a significantly smaller P3 amplitude. S ignificant correlations between ''psychotic features'' and P3 amplitud e was found. Implications of these findings on research, classificatio n, and management of depression have been outlined.