Intrusive traumatic recollections and comorbid posttraumatic stress disorder in depressed patients

Objective: Recent studies have found evidence of the presence and role of i ntrusive traumatic memories in depressed patients. In this study, we attemp ted to replicate these findings, examining the full range of early and late r traumatic events, as well as comorbid posttraumatic stress disorder, in m ale and female depressed patients. Methods: Sixty-nine outpatients meeting criteria of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, four th edition, for major depressive episode were recruited from the outpatient department of an academic hospital. Results: Seventy-five percent of the d epressed patients were found to have had one or more early and/or more rece nt traumatic experiences. The symptom category of reexperiencing was diagno sed in 48% of these trauma-exposed respondents. Comorbid posttraumatic stre ss disorder was diagnosed in 13% of the total sample. Conclusions: The find ings show that depressed patients are highly likely to have experienced tra umatic events and intrusive traumatic recollections. Future research should focus on the direction of any causal relationship between trauma, reexperi encing, posttraumatic stress disorder, and depression.