Related Experiment Videos
Factors associated with alexithymia in patients suffering from depression
K Honkalampi1, P Saarinen, J Hintikka
1Department of Psychiatry, Research and Development Unit, Kuopio University Hospital, Kuopio, Finland. kirsi.honkalampi.kuh.fi
Background:
We studied the factors associated with alexithymia in 137 depressed outpatients.
Methods:
Diagnosis of depression was confirmed by means of the Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-III-R. Alexithymia was screened using the 20-item version of the Toronto Alexithymia Scale. Severity of depression was assessed using the 21-item Beck Depression Inventory, and other psychiatric symptoms with the help of the Symptoms Checklist (SCL-90). Life satisfaction was also assessed with a structured scale.
Results:
Almost half of the patients were considered alexithymic. They were significantly more often male, unmarried and had a lower education than the nonalexithymic patients. Alexithymic patients more often showed psychiatric symptoms (SCL-90) and were also more often severely depressed and dissatisfied with their life than were the other patients. Logistic regression analyses revealed that four factors were independently associated with alexithymia: male gender, a low level of education, low life satisfaction and severe depression. Sleep disturbances were independently associated with alexithymia in men and severe depression in women.
Conclusions:
Alexithymia is very common among patients with depressive disorder. An awareness of these risk factors would be useful in improving the efficacy of treatment.