Elsevier

Journal of Affective Disorders

Volume 40, Issue 3, 14 October 1996, Pages 169-173
Journal of Affective Disorders

Research report
Right hemisphere abnormalities in major depression: Quantitative electroencephalographic findings before and after treatment

https://doi.org/10.1016/0165-0327(96)00057-2Get rights and content

Abstract

The quantitative EEGs of drug-free depressed patients were analyzed and compared to age and sex-matched controls, using spectral analysis. In addition, QEEGs of depressed patients after clinical improvement resulting from 6 weeks of antidepressant treatment were also analyzed. The subjects were 20 patients suffering from major depression (DSM-III-R). Scores on the Hamilton Rating Scale for Depression (HRSD) of all patients showed a reduction of more than 50% at the end of the 6th week. The results show: (1) delta and theta bipolar absolute powers of the right hemisphere increased in drug-free depressed patients, compared to controls. (2) No changes in all bands of QEEG were found after clinical improvement resulting from 6 weeks of treatment. These results suggest that the right hemisphere plays an important role in major depression, and that a reduction in symptoms is not necessarily indicative of an improvement in underlying major depression.

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