[Major depression and "deterioration" of intellectual function]

Forty five subjects with major depression or bipolar disorder were studied during the symptom-free period using the Wechsler and Rorschach tests. The tests revealed a reduced capacity to utilise data obtained by analysis and to integrate them by the organisation of complex thought processes as well as frequent loss of contact with reality. This finding seems to demonstrate that the apparently symptom-free periods of depression often display alterations in the capacity for thought.