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Depression in Dercum's disease and in obesity: A case control study

Hansson, Emma LU ; Svensson, Henry LU and Brorson, Håkan LU orcid (2012) In BMC Psychiatry 12.
Abstract
Background: Dercum's disease is characterised by pronounced pain in the adipose tissue and a number of associated symptoms. The condition is usually accompanied by generalised weight gain. Many of the associated symptoms could also be signs of depression. Depression in Dercum's disease has been reported in case reports but has never been studied using an evidence-based methodology. The aim of this study was to examine the presence of depression in patients with Dercum's disease compared to obese controls that do not experience any pain. Methods: A total of 111 women fulfilling the clinical criteria of Dercum's disease were included. As controls, 40 obese healthy women were recruited. To measure depression, the Montgomery Asberg Depression... (More)
Background: Dercum's disease is characterised by pronounced pain in the adipose tissue and a number of associated symptoms. The condition is usually accompanied by generalised weight gain. Many of the associated symptoms could also be signs of depression. Depression in Dercum's disease has been reported in case reports but has never been studied using an evidence-based methodology. The aim of this study was to examine the presence of depression in patients with Dercum's disease compared to obese controls that do not experience any pain. Methods: A total of 111 women fulfilling the clinical criteria of Dercum's disease were included. As controls, 40 obese healthy women were recruited. To measure depression, the Montgomery Asberg Depression Rating Scale (MADRS) was used. Results: According to the total MADRS score, less than half of the patients were classified as having "no depression" (44%), the majority had "light" or "moderate depression" (55%) and one individual had "severe depression" in the Dercum group. In the control groups, the majority of the patients were classified as having "no depression" (85%) and a small number had "light depression" (15%). There was a statistically significant difference for the total MADRS score between the two groups (p = 0.014). Conclusion: The results indicate that the patients with Dercum's disease are more likely to suffer from depression than controls. (Less)
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author
; and
organization
publishing date
type
Contribution to journal
publication status
published
subject
keywords
Dercum's disease, Adiposis dolorosa, Chronic pain, Obesity, Depression, MADRS
in
BMC Psychiatry
volume
12
publisher
BioMed Central (BMC)
external identifiers
  • wos:000307405700002
  • scopus:84863204757
  • pmid:22759645
ISSN
1471-244X
DOI
10.1186/1471-244X-12-74
language
English
LU publication?
yes
id
f8c26290-b830-436a-8ec1-5500facde72a (old id 3152003)
date added to LUP
2016-04-01 13:00:55
date last changed
2022-01-27 08:51:33
@article{f8c26290-b830-436a-8ec1-5500facde72a,
  abstract     = {{Background: Dercum's disease is characterised by pronounced pain in the adipose tissue and a number of associated symptoms. The condition is usually accompanied by generalised weight gain. Many of the associated symptoms could also be signs of depression. Depression in Dercum's disease has been reported in case reports but has never been studied using an evidence-based methodology. The aim of this study was to examine the presence of depression in patients with Dercum's disease compared to obese controls that do not experience any pain. Methods: A total of 111 women fulfilling the clinical criteria of Dercum's disease were included. As controls, 40 obese healthy women were recruited. To measure depression, the Montgomery Asberg Depression Rating Scale (MADRS) was used. Results: According to the total MADRS score, less than half of the patients were classified as having "no depression" (44%), the majority had "light" or "moderate depression" (55%) and one individual had "severe depression" in the Dercum group. In the control groups, the majority of the patients were classified as having "no depression" (85%) and a small number had "light depression" (15%). There was a statistically significant difference for the total MADRS score between the two groups (p = 0.014). Conclusion: The results indicate that the patients with Dercum's disease are more likely to suffer from depression than controls.}},
  author       = {{Hansson, Emma and Svensson, Henry and Brorson, Håkan}},
  issn         = {{1471-244X}},
  keywords     = {{Dercum's disease; Adiposis dolorosa; Chronic pain; Obesity; Depression; MADRS}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  publisher    = {{BioMed Central (BMC)}},
  series       = {{BMC Psychiatry}},
  title        = {{Depression in Dercum's disease and in obesity: A case control study}},
  url          = {{https://lup.lub.lu.se/search/files/3105585/3327007.pdf}},
  doi          = {{10.1186/1471-244X-12-74}},
  volume       = {{12}},
  year         = {{2012}},
}