Duration of REM sleep latency as predictor of effect of antidepressant therapy. A preliminary report.

Twenty-three depressed patients were treated with antidepressant drugs or ECT. Thirteen of the depressions were clinically of the endogenous type, and all these patients responded well to therapy. Ten patients suffered from atypical depression; of these only seven reacted favourably to therapy. EEG showed that patients who were cured had short REM latencies, whereas the three patients who did not respond in a satisfactory way had long REM latencies. These findings suggest that in depressions duration of REM latency may be correlated to respond to antidepressant therapy.