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The impact of depression heterogeneity on cognitive control in major depressive disorder

journal contribution
posted on 2023-05-17, 16:47 authored by Quinn, CR, Harris, A, Kim FelminghamKim Felmingham, Boyce, P, Kemp, A
Objective: Depressed patients display a variety of deficits in neuropsychological function, and contradictory findings in the literature may be due to disorder heterogeneity. The aim of this study was to examine the impact of severity, subtype and symptoms on cognitive control.

Methods: Neuropsychological function across a range of cognitive control tasks was examined in melancholic (n = 65) and non-melancholic depressed patients (n = 59) relative to controls (n = 124). The relationship between subtype (melancholia vs non-melancholia) and anxiety was also examined.

Results: Melancholia was characterised by attention and working memory deficits typically associated with the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex, while non-melancholia was characterised by verbal memory recall deficits indicative of left frontal lobe and medial temporal lobe function. The severity of anxious arousal and psychomotor disturbance contributed to cognitive impairment more than the severity of depression symptoms and anxious apprehension.

Conclusions: Findings highlight a differential impact of depression subtype and severity, and suggest that anxious arousal and psychomotor disturbance may contribute to poorer performance on neuropsychological tasks associated with dorsolateral prefrontal cortex function.

History

Publication title

Australian and New Zealand Journal of Psychiatry

Volume

46

Issue

11

Pagination

1079-1088

ISSN

0004-8674

Department/School

School of Psychological Sciences

Publisher

Sage

Place of publication

54 University St, P O Box 378, Carlton, Australia, Victoria, 3053

Rights statement

Copyright 2012 The Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Psychiatrists

Repository Status

  • Restricted

Socio-economic Objectives

Clinical health not elsewhere classified

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