Table 1.
Clinical observations on Huntington's disease patients.
| Clinical studies (number of patients) | Psychiatric observations | Scale used to assess depression and/or anxiety | Use of pharmacologic treatments | References |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 217 patients with motor symptoms (comparison black vs. white patients) | 32.8% had affective disorders Age at onset of motor symptoms for persons with affective disorder was significantly later than that for persons without affective disorder (43.4 and 38.7 years, respectively). | DSM-III criteria Diagnostic Interview Schedule | ND | Folstein et al., 1987 |
| 134 patients Male subjects = 47% | 39% were depressed 16% had attempted suicide 34% had suicidal ideation | UHDRS PBA-HD | 34% were given antidepressant drugs. 24% were given sedative or anxiolytic treatment | Craufurd et al., 2001 |
| 2835 patients Male subjects = 47.5% | More than 40% of patients have depressive symptoms. More than 10% have attempted suicide | UHDRS | More than 50% had received antidepressant treatments in the past | Paulsen et al., 2005 |
| 681 patients Male subjects = 46% | More psychiatric symptoms (e.g., depression, anxiety, obsessive-compulsiveness) than healthy people. Higher levels of psychiatric symptoms in individuals with severe motor impairment | UHDRS SCL-90-R | ND | Duff et al., 2007 |
| 204 participants, blind to their genetic status, asymptomatic (definite HD were excluded) | 20% had experienced major depression 17% had an anxiety disorder, and 11% had general anxiety. The rate of depression increased as a function of proximity to clinical onset | CIDI DSM-III criteria | ND | Julien et al., 2007 |
| 254 at risk of HD or recently diagnosed participants Male subjects = 29% | Increased anxiety score in presymptomatic carriers and patients with HD individuals. ≈25% of presymptomatic carriers and patients with HD were depressed Prevalence of symptoms increases with the progression of HD. | SCL-90-R CES-D | 21% were given antidepressant, anxiolytic or antipsychotic treatments | Marshall et al., 2007 |
| 152 patients, including pre-symptomatic Male subjects = 45.5% | Higher prevalence of depression in HD patients, including pre-symptomatic. No higher prevalence with development of HD | PBA-HD | ND | Kingma et al., 2008 |
| 154 patients including pre-symptomatic carriers Male subjects = 45.7% | Higher prevalence of depression/anxiety in presymptomatic and symptomatic HD patients than average population. | DSM-IV criteria CIDI | 26.4% were given antidepressant treatment | Van Duijn et al., 2008 |
| 111 patients | Higher prevalence of neuropsychiatric symptoms in patients with HD than average population. Prevalence did not increase with the progression of HD. | PBA-HD | ND | Thompson et al., 2012 |
| 803 prodromal patients with HD mutation Male subjects = 36% | Depression prevalence higher in females. | BDI-II SCL-90-R UHDRS | ND | Epping et al., 2013 |
BDI-II, Beck Depression Inventory; CES-D, Center for Epidemiological Studies Depression Scale; CIDI, Composite International Diagnostic Interview; DSM-III/IV, Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders 3rd/4th edition; PBA-HD, Problem Behaviors Assessment for Huntington Disease; SCL-90-R, Symptom Checklist 90 Revised; UHDRS, Unified Huntington Disease Rating Scale; ND, no data.