BACKGROUND: Seasonal changes in mood and behavior are considered to be common in the general population and in patients with psychiatric disorders. However, in several studies this seasonality could not be demonstrated. The present study examined self-attributed seasonality of depressive symptoms among patients with a lifetime diagnosis of a depressive disorder (D), an anxiety disorder (A), a comorbid depressive and anxiety disorder (DA), and healthy controls (HC). METHODS: The CIDI was used to establish diagnoses according to DSM-IV criteria in 2,168 participants of the Netherlands Study of Depression and Anxiety (NESDA). The Seasonal Pattern Assessment Questionnaire (SPAQ) was administered to assess variation in mood and behavior. RESULTS: Of the 2,168 participants 53.5% reported seasonality of mood. Highest percentages of low mood were seen in the winter months. Although all groups showed this pattern of lowered mood during the winter months, D, A, and DA were significantly (P < .001) more likely to experience seasonality is this respect. This was also shown for seasonal changes in energy, social activities, sleeping, eating, weight and for the Global Seasonality Score. A limitation of this study was the cross-sectional design. CONCLUSIONS: Seasonal variation in mood and behavior was demonstrated for both participants with a lifetime diagnosis of depression and/or anxiety disorder and for healthy controls, but patients with anxiety and/or depression were more likely to experience this seasonal variation. Clinicians should take into account that the time of the year could influence the feelings of well- and ill-being of their patients.
BACKGROUND: Seasonal changes in mood and behavior are considered to be common in the general population and in patients with psychiatric disorders. However, in several studies this seasonality could not be demonstrated. The present study examined self-attributed seasonality of depressive symptoms among patients with a lifetime diagnosis of a depressive disorder (D), an anxiety disorder (A), a comorbid depressive and anxiety disorder (DA), and healthy controls (HC). METHODS: The CIDI was used to establish diagnoses according to DSM-IV criteria in 2,168 participants of the Netherlands Study of Depression and Anxiety (NESDA). The Seasonal Pattern Assessment Questionnaire (SPAQ) was administered to assess variation in mood and behavior. RESULTS: Of the 2,168 participants 53.5% reported seasonality of mood. Highest percentages of low mood were seen in the winter months. Although all groups showed this pattern of lowered mood during the winter months, D, A, and DA were significantly (P < .001) more likely to experience seasonality is this respect. This was also shown for seasonal changes in energy, social activities, sleeping, eating, weight and for the Global Seasonality Score. A limitation of this study was the cross-sectional design. CONCLUSIONS: Seasonal variation in mood and behavior was demonstrated for both participants with a lifetime diagnosis of depression and/or anxiety disorder and for healthy controls, but patients with anxiety and/or depression were more likely to experience this seasonal variation. Clinicians should take into account that the time of the year could influence the feelings of well- and ill-being of their patients.
Authors: Esther Aarts; Agnes Akkerman; Mareike Altgassen; Ronald Bartels; Becky Beckers; Kirsten Bevelander; Erik Bijleveld; Esmeralda Blaney Davidson; Annemarie Boleij; Janita Bralten; Toon Cillessen; Jurgen Claassen; Roshan Cools; Ineke Cornelissen; Martin Dresler; Thijs Eijsvogels; Myrthe Faber; Guillén Fernández; Bernd Figner; Matthias Fritsche; Sascha Füllbrunn; Surya Gayet; Marleen M. H. J. van Gelder; Marcel van Gerven; Sabine Geurts; Corina U. Greven; Martine Groefsema; Koen Haak; Peter Hagoort; Yvonne Hartman; Beatrice van der Heijden; Erno Hermans; Vivian Heuvelmans; Florian Hintz; Janet den Hollander; Anneloes M. Hulsman; Sebastian Idesis; Martin Jaeger; Esther Janse; Joost Janzing; Roy P. C. Kessels; Johan C. Karremans; Willemien de Kleijn; Marieke Klein; Floris Klumpers; Nils Kohn; Hubert Korzilius; Bas Krahmer; Floris de Lange; Judith van Leeuwen; Huaiyu Liu; Maartje Luijten; Peggy Manders; Katerina Manevska; José P. Marques; Jon Matthews; James M. McQueen; Pieter Medendorp; René Melis; Antje Meyer; Joukje Oosterman; Lucy Overbeek; Marius Peelen; Jean Popma; Geert Postma; Karin Roelofs; Yvonne G. T. van Rossenberg; Gabi Schaap; Paul Scheepers; Luc Selen; Marianne Starren; Dorine W. Swinkels; Indira Tendolkar; Dick Thijssen; Hans Timmerman; Rayyan Tutunji; Anil Tuladhar; Harm Veling; Maaike Verhagen; Jasper Verkroost; Jacqueline Vink; Vivian Vriezekolk; Janna Vrijsen; Jana Vyrastekova; Selina van der Wal; Roel Willems; Arthur Willemsen Journal: PLoS One Date: 2021-12-29 Impact factor: 3.240
Authors: Wim H Winthorst; Annelieke M Roest; Elisabeth H Bos; Ybe Meesters; Brenda W J H Penninx; Willem A Nolen; Peter de Jonge Journal: BJPsych Open Date: 2017-08-30