OBJECTIVE: The authors' goal was to replicate an earlier finding of a
familial liability for depression in Alzheimer's disease. METHOD: The
family histories of depression and dementia were compared in 28 patients
experiencing a first episode of major depression after onset of Alzheimer's
disease and 74 nondepressed patients with Alzheimer's disease. RESULTS:
Significantly more families of depressed dementia patients included
depressed first-degree relatives. There was no difference between
Alzheimer's disease patients with and without depression in the proportion
of families with a history of dementia. CONCLUSIONS: Major depression in
Alzheimer's disease is associated with a familial liability for depression
that is independent of any familial liability for dementia.
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