[The course of a clinically treated depression in the elderly]

A study was performed of the course of major depressions (DSM-III) of elderly people who had been admitted to a psychogeriatric ward of a general psychiatric hospital. Patients were selected by searching the files. Patients with another diagnosis on axis I or a serious physical illness were excluded. The selected patients were traced and asked to participate in a follow-up investigation. From the files 38 patients were selected, of whom three had died in hospital. The remaining 35 patients included 28 women and seven men, with an average age of 78 years. After discharge seven of them died a natural death and six patients refused to participate. The remaining 22 patients were visited. From the files it appeared that 54% had completely recovered at discharge. Patients with a delusional depression had been hospitalised significantly longer, had been treated with more medicines and had less often been completely recovered at discharge. At the time of the follow up 64% had completely recovered but 32% had had a relapse. Patients with a delusional depression less often recovered completely. A remarkably low percentage of the population studied were able to live on their own. The results of this study are compared with foreign studies.