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Unlabelled: Studies performed in recent years in different countries suggest a considerable prevalence of depressive disorders in primary care patients. The aim of our study was the assessment of depressive disorders among primary care patients in Poland., Material and Methods: Three-hundred thirty-three randomly chosen private and public primary care clinics from the whole country took part in the study. In each centre, 20 or 25 patients aged 18-65 years coming for a regular visit were asked to participate in the study. All patients filled in the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI). Additionally, basic demographic data and information on the presence of chronic somatic diseases were collected. Those patients who scored 12 or more points on BDI (cut-offpoint for depression in Poland) were evaluated by a primary care physician for presence of a depressive disorder upon the ICD-10 criteria and subsequently referred for a psychiatric consultation to the nearest psychiatric outpatient clinic for establishing plausible diagnosis of depression., Results: Out of 7360 patients approached, 7289 (95.5%) agreed to participate. The mean age of the sample was 43.3 +/- 13.2 and 71% were females. Forty one percent of patients (2985) had 12 or more points on the BDI and were referred for a psychiatric evaluation. Only half of them came for a psychiatric consultation. Depressive disorder was recognised in 906 patients. Estimated prevalence of depressive disorders in the whole sample was 23.3%. The patients in whom depressive disorders were confirmed by psychiatric assessment had significantly more often hypertension, ischaemic heart disease, anaemia, stroke and hypothyroidism., Conclusions: The results obtained show that depressive disorders' prevalence in primary care patients in Poland is significant. The patients who had depressive disorders significantly more often than patients without depression suffered from some somatic diseases. In light of the results, both recognition and adequate treatment of depressive disorders in primary care patients should be regarded as equally important as the recognition and treatment of cardiovascular diseases or other common somatic illnesses.

Aim: The aim of the study was to evaluate the prevalence of depressive disorders in perimenopausal women reporting to gynecologists and to assess a possibility of screening and diagnosing depression in gynecological practice., Method: The study entailed 2262 female patients of the age of 45-55 attending 120 gynecologists in Poland. Patients were first asked to fill in the Beck's Depression Inventory and next examined by their gynecologists to verify the presence of the basic symptoms of depressive episode according to ICD-10 diagnostic criteria. Patients who obtained 12 points or more in BDI total score were referred for a psychiatric consultation, including the MINI questionnaire. The study was monitored by 'Servier Polska'., Results: 32.5% of women aged 45-55 years visiting gynecologists scored 12 points or more on the BDI scale. Patients with high BDI scores reported long-lasting somatic and emotional symptoms associated with menopause more frequently than patients with low BDI scores. Women with high BDI scores also more frequently experienced gynecological surgery in the past, more frequently attended gynecological clinics, and reported more peri- and postmatal mood disorders. 57% of patients did not visit psychiatrists. Depressive disorders were diagnosed in 76% of patients who came for the psychiatric evaluation., Conclusions: The study suggests that more than 19% of perimenopausal women attending their gynecologists suffer from depressive disorders. Gynecologists in Poland can diagnose depression accurately and start pharmacological treatment of the disorder in half of the patients.

Aim: A comparison of the clinical picture and treatment results of the first depressive episode with the second and the third and further depressive recurrence., Methods: The study was designed as a one-year, prospective, naturalistic observation of the clinical course of depression. One hundred and sixty-six psychiatrists participated in the study, performed in the years 1999-2000. Data of 179 patients with the first depressive episode, 170 patients with the second episode and 183 patients with third or further episode were included in the analysis., Results: At the beginning of the observation, the groups of patients did not differ as to age, proportion of gender and intensity of depression, both global and particular symptoms. Patients with the first depressive episode were included into the study after longer duration of symptom occurrence and were more often treated with new generation antidepressants. Comparison of the course of disease revealed higher intensity of depressive symptoms, both global and particular clusters after 6 months and 12 months of treatment, and lower percentage of remission in patients with multiple episodes compared to the first episode group. The type of antidepressant was not significantly related to the efficacy of treatment. Ten patients (2%) had suicidal attempts, one (0.2%) with fatal outcome: in first episode group they were made during initial period of treatment, in multiple episodes--later in the course., Conclusions: The results obtained indicate that the course and the treatment outcome of subsequent depressive episodes are less favourable compared to the first depressive episode. Treatment recommendations for depression may be verified based on the results of the study.

For the assessing the incidence of mood disturbances among the neurological out-patients 3287 of them were examined by 111 neurologists during their routine practice. Early diagnosis, the type of mood disturbances and the depth of depression were estimated by the use of Beck's Depression Inventory, the questionnaire based on The Mini-International Neuropsychiatric Interview and Hamilton Depression Rating Scale, as well. Around half of the patients (50.47%) were suspected on depression, as an early diagnosis. In suspected and diagnosed depressive patients the symptoms as anxiety, low activity precordial pain, headaches, dry mouth, constipation, sleep and appetite troubles were significantly (p < 0.01) more frequent than in euthymic subjects. Among all studied patients the episode of depression were found as a final diagnose in 17.2%, recurrent depressive disorders--in 17.6% and dysthymia--in 2.8% of subjects. In finally diagnosed depressive patients the chronic neurological problems were significantly (p = 0.013) more frequent, as the cause of the visit, than in the euthymic ones. The low mood was equally frequent among the patients with Parkinson's disease, multiple sclerosis and cerebrovascular disorders, as well.