Am J Psychiatry 1988; 145:96-99
Copyright © 1988 by American Psychiatric Association
Seasonal affective disorder in the southern hemisphere
P Boyce and G Parker
Mood Disorders Unit, Prince Henry Hospital, Sydney, Australia.
To determine whether seasonal affective disorder exists in the southern
hemisphere and whether there is any seasonal specificity in phenomenology,
the authors compared 23 subjects who reported a winter/autumn affective
disorder, consistent with earlier definitions of the syndrome, with 22
subjects who reported a spring/summer affective disorder. The subjects with
winter/autumn onset were characterized by increased appetite, carbohydrate
craving, and increased sleep; those with spring/summer onset reported
decreased sleep and decreased appetite. Hypotheses concerning the etiology
of seasonal affective disorder are discussed.
