Table 1.

Demographic characteristics of control and MDD subjects

Parameter	Controls (n=10)	MDD (n=10)
Age (years)	40.2 ± 4.9	44.8 ± 5.3
Age range (years)	17 – 65	19 – 81
PMI (hrs)	22.5 ± 2.1	24.2 ± 1.3
PMI range (hrs)	13 – 35	17 – 31
pH	6.6 ± 0.09	6.49 ± 0.08
pH range	5.93 – 7.0	6.06 – 6.82
TF (months)	44.2 ± 3.5	53.7 ± 4.8
TF range (months)	22 – 57	38 – 82
Gender (F:M)	4:6	4:6
Medication history*	none	n = 3
Toxicology:
• Clean	n=8	n=3
• Antidepressant drugs	none	n=1 (sertraline)
• Other	n=2 (propoxyphene, oxycodone, n=1; ethanol, n=1)	n = 6 (morphine, codeine, hydrocodone, diphenhydramine, n=1; lidocaine, n=1; tramadol, n=1; cannabinoids, n=1; ethanol, CO, alprazolam, n=1; ethanol, n=1)
Cause of death	Cardiovascular disease, n=10	Suicide, n=6 (shot gun, n=3; CO poisoning, n=1; hanging, n=1; drowning, n=1), Other causes, n=4 (cardiovascular disease, n=3; homicide, n=1)
Diagnosis	none (n=10)	MDD, n=8; MDD and alcohol abuse, n=1; MDD and cannabis abuse, n=1
Duration of MDD (years)	not applicable	6 ± 2
Duration range	not applicable	1 month – 20 years
Onset of MDD (years)	not applicable	36.7 ± 5.1
Onset range (years)	not applicable	15 – 70
Smoking	Smokers, n=1	Smokers, n=6

MDD - major depressive disorder; PMI - postmortem interval; TF - time in formalin; CO - carbon monoxide.

^*Treatment with antidepressants within 4 weeks prior to death.

Data represent the mean ± SEM. The average age, PMI, TF and pH of MDD subjects were not statistically different from the control subjects.