Alexithymia, Suicide Ideation and Homocysteine Levels in Drug Naïve Patients with Major Depression: A Study in the "Real World" Clinical Practice

• Published in: Clinical psychopharmacology and neuroscience : the official scientific journal of the Korean College of Neuropsychopharmacology 2019, 17(2), , pp.318-322
• Main Authors: De Berardis, Domenico, Olivieri, Luigi, Rapini, Gabriella, Di Natale, Serena, Serroni, Nicola, Fornaro, Michele, Orsolini, Laura, Valchera, Alessandro, Carano, Alessandro, Vellante, Federica, Varasano, Paola Annunziata, Lucidi Pressanti, Gabriella, Serafini, Gianluca, Pompili, Maurizio, Martinotti, Giovanni, Di Giannantonio, Massimo
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Brief Report; 정신과학
• ISSN: 1738-1088; 2093-4327
• DOI: 10.9758/cpn.2019.17.2.318

: This study was performed to elucidate relationships between alexithymia, suicide ideation and homocysteine levels in drug-naïve outpatients with major depressive disorder (MDD). : Sixty seven outpatients with MDD with melancholic features were evaluated by the means of the Hamilton Depression Rating Scale, the Toronto Alexithymia Scale (TAS-20), the Scale of Suicide Ideation, and homocysteine levels. : Alexithymic subjects showed higher scores on all scales and higher homocysteine levels. Regression analysis shown higher homocysteine levels and TAS-20' "Difficulty in Describing Feelings" dimension, in turn being associated with higher suicide ideation. : In conclusion, alexithymic MDD outpatients may characterize for homocysteine dysregulation that may be linked to suicide ideation, regardless depression' severity. However, study limitations are discussed and must be considered.