Minor depression after stroke: an initial validation of the DSM-IV construct.

Using 141 patients with a single left- or right-hemisphere stroke, the authors investigated the distinction between major and minor depression after stroke. Major- and minor-depression patients and nondepressed control patients were compared, and a logistic-regression model suggested that major and minor depressions may be cross-sectionally distinguishable disorders. Minor depression was associated with younger age, left-hemisphere lesion location, and more caudal hemisphere lesions. There was an association between minor depression and pathoanatomical variables, with results generally consistent with the categorical vs. the continuum hypothesis of mood disorders in stroke victims. Authors discuss the significance of damage in left-hemisphere posterior portions of the brain for the development of minor depression after stroke.