DST ABNORMALITY AS A PREDICTOR OF COURSE IN MAJOR DEPRESSION

Seventy-six inpatients with major depression received a 1-mg dexamethasone suppression test (DST) and began a semi-annual follow-up lasting 5 years. The 20 subjects with abnormal baseline DST results were significantly more likely to make psychologically serious suicide attempts during follow-up though baseline suppressors were as likely as non-suppressors to make non-serious attempts. Patients who were non-suppressors at the beginning of follow-up were also more likely to develop mania or hypomania, whether or not they had a bipolar diagnosis at intake. © 1990.