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Normalisation of the Dexamethasone Suppression Test: A Correlate of Clinical Improvement in Primary Depressives

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  29 January 2018

Peter C. W. Bowie  and
Amal Y. Beaini
Peter C. W. Bowie
Affiliation:
Leeds University
Amal Y. Beaini
Affiliation:
University of Leeds, Scalebor Park Hospital, Burley-in-Wharfedale, Ilkley, West Yorkshire, LS29 7AJ
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Summary

Thirty-six patients with a primary depressive illness, admitted consecutively to hospital, were studied. All patients had a pre-treatment DST, followed by weekly DSTs during a six-week treatment period. Three categories of DST response were identified, on the basis of the serial DSTs. All three groups showed improvement with treatment: the two non-suppressor groups showed normalisation of the DST over the treatment period, but only the normalising non-suppressors showed a significant correlation between DST normalisation and clinical improvement.

Type
Papers
Information
The British Journal of Psychiatry , Volume 147 , Issue 1 , July 1985 , pp. 30 - 35
Copyright
Copyright © 1985 The Royal College of Psychiatrists 

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