Full Text Full Text (PDF) Alert me when this article is cited Alert me if a correction is posted Citation Map Email this article to a Colleague Similar articles in this journal Similar articles in PubMed Alert me to new issues of the journal Add to My Articles & Searches Download to citation manager Citing Articles via HighWire Citing Articles via Google Scholar Articles by Weissman, M. M. Articles by Verdeli, H. Search for Related Content PubMed Citation Articles by Weissman, M. M. Articles by Verdeli, H. Child/Adolescent Psychiatry Other Addictive Disorders Anxiety Disorders (General) Depression Other Childhood Disorders Depression Genetics Related Article

Offspring of Depressed Parents: 20 Years Later

OBJECTIVE: This study was a 20-year follow-up of offspring of depressed and nondepressed parents to determine the magnitude and continuity of the risk of parental depression to the offspring. METHOD: The authors followed 151 offspring of moderately to severely depressed parents or nonpsychiatrically ill comparison subjects for about 20 years, to a mean age of 35 years. Four interviews and diagnostic assessments from childhood or adolescence to adulthood were conducted by assessors blind to the parents’ clinical status or the offspring’s previous history. Final best-estimate diagnoses were also made by blinded psychologists or psychiatrists. RESULTS: The risks for anxiety disorders, major depression, and substance dependence were approximately three times as high in the offspring of depressed parents as in the offspring of nondepressed parents. Social impairment was also greater. The period of highest incidence for major depressive disorder remained between ages 15 and 20 years, largely in females. The early onset of disorder seen in the high-risk group was not offset by a later onset in the low-risk group as they matured. Higher rates of medical problems and mortality in the offspring of depressed parents were beginning to emerge as the offspring entered middle age. CONCLUSIONS: The offspring of depressed parents constitute a high-risk group for psychiatric and medical problems, which begin early and continue through adulthood. Early detection seems warranted.

Related Article:

In This Issue
Am J Psychiatry 2006 163: A52. [Full Text] [PDF]

This article has been cited by other articles:

				L. S. Beeber, V. S. Lewis, C. Cooper, L. Maxwell, and M. Sandelowski Meeting the "Now" Need: PMH-APRN-- Interpreter Teams Provide In-Home Mental Health Intervention for Depressed Latina Mothers With Limited English Proficiency Journal of the American Psychiatric Nurses Association, August 1, 2009; 15(4): 249 - 259. [Abstract] [PDF]

				B. J. Milne, A. Caspi, H. Harrington, R. Poulton, M. Rutter, and T. E. Moffitt Predictive Value of Family History on Severity of Illness: The Case for Depression, Anxiety, Alcohol Dependence, and Drug Dependence Arch Gen Psychiatry, July 1, 2009; 66(7): 738 - 747. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				J. Garber, G. N. Clarke, V. R. Weersing, W. R. Beardslee, D. A. Brent, T. R. G. Gladstone, L. L. DeBar, F. L. Lynch, E. D'Angelo, S. D. Hollon, et al. Prevention of Depression in At-Risk Adolescents: A Randomized Controlled Trial JAMA, June 3, 2009; 301(21): 2215 - 2224. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				B. L. Parry Assessing Risk and Benefit: To Treat or Not to Treat Major Depression During Pregnancy With Antidepressant Medication Am J Psychiatry, May 1, 2009; 166(5): 512 - 514. [Full Text] [PDF]

				B. S. Peterson, V. Warner, R. Bansal, H. Zhu, X. Hao, J. Liu, K. Durkin, P. B. Adams, P. Wickramaratne, and M. M. Weissman Cortical thinning in persons at increased familial risk for major depression PNAS, April 14, 2009; 106(15): 6273 - 6278. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				K. Beesdo, J. Y. F. Lau, A. E. Guyer, E. B. McClure-Tone, C. S. Monk, E. E. Nelson, S. J. Fromm, M. A. Goldwin, H.-U. Wittchen, E. Leibenluft, et al. Common and Distinct Amygdala-Function Perturbations in Depressed vs Anxious Adolescents Arch Gen Psychiatry, March 1, 2009; 66(3): 275 - 285. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				F. Schmitt, J. Piha, H. Helenius, C. Baldus, C. Kienbacher, B. Steck, M. Thastum, M. Watson, and G. Romer Multinational Study of Cancer Patients and Their Children: Factors Associated With Family Functioning J. Clin. Oncol., December 20, 2008; 26(36): 5877 - 5883. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				B. L. Parry, C. J. Meliska, D. L. Sorenson, A. M. Lopez, L. F. Martinez, S. Nowakowski, J. A. Elliott, R. L. Hauger, and D. F. Kripke Plasma Melatonin Circadian Rhythm Disturbances During Pregnancy and Postpartum in Depressed Women and Women With Personal or Family Histories of Depression Am J Psychiatry, December 1, 2008; 165(12): 1551 - 1558. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				D. J. Pilowsky, P. Wickramaratne, A. Talati, M. Tang, C. W. Hughes, J. Garber, E. Malloy, C. King, G. Cerda, A. B. Sood, et al. Children of Depressed Mothers 1 Year After the Initiation of Maternal Treatment: Findings From the STAR*D-Child Study Am J Psychiatry, September 1, 2008; 165(9): 1136 - 1147. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				E. C. Tully, W. G. Iacono, and M. McGue An Adoption Study of Parental Depression as an Environmental Liability for Adolescent Depression and Childhood Disruptive Disorders Am J Psychiatry, September 1, 2008; 165(9): 1148 - 1154. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				Practice Parameter for the Assessment and Treatment of Children and Adolescents With Depressive Disorders Focus, July 1, 2008; 6(3): 379 - 400. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				C. S. Monk, R. G. Klein, E. H. Telzer, E. A. Schroth, S. Mannuzza, J. L. Moulton III, M. Guardino, C. L. Masten, E. B. McClure-Tone, S. Fromm, et al. Amygdala and Nucleus Accumbens Activation to Emotional Facial Expressions in Children and Adolescents at Risk for Major Depression Am J Psychiatry, January 1, 2008; 165(1): 90 - 98. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				R. A. Zuckerbrot, A. H. Cheung, P. S. Jensen, R. E.K. Stein, D. Laraque, and and the GLAD-PC Steering Group Guidelines for Adolescent Depression in Primary Care (GLAD-PC): I. Identification, Assessment, and Initial Management Pediatrics, November 1, 2007; 120(5): e1299 - e1312. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				R. D. Goodwin, P. Wickramaratne, Y. Nomura, and M. M. Weissman Familial Depression and Respiratory Illness in Children Arch Pediatr Adolesc Med, May 1, 2007; 161(5): 487 - 494. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				Et al Evid. Based Ment. Health, February 1, 2007; 10(1): 7 - 8. [Full Text] [PDF]

				Other articles noted Evid. Based Med., October 1, 2006; 11(5): 159 - 160. [Full Text] [PDF]

				H. H. Goldman and R. E. Drake Mood Disorders and Workplace Performance: Half a Loaf Am J Psychiatry, September 1, 2006; 163(9): 1490 - 1491. [Full Text] [PDF]

				Long-Term Effects of Parental Depression on Offspring Journal Watch Women's Health, July 27, 2006; 2006(727): 5 - 5. [Full Text]

				The children of depressed parents have a persistently high risk of mental illness BMJ, July 22, 2006; 333(7560): . [Full Text] [PDF]

				Minerva BMJ, July 1, 2006; 333(7557): 52 - 52. [Full Text] [PDF]

Get information about faster international access.

Privacy Policy

Copyright © 2006 American Psychiatric Association. All rights reserved.

Home | Search | Current Issue | Past Issues | Subscribe | All APPI Journals | Help | Contact Us