Posted on September 4, 2009

As depression can have far-reaching implications for an individual in terms of their health and mental wellbeing, understanding the causes and subsequent effects of depression is important in the health care industry.

Science Daily recently published a release on a study which found sleep patterns in adolescents can predict who may be at a greater risk for developing depression. This study was completed by researchers at UT Southwestern Medical Center.

Research has determined that sleep is a biological factor known to be associated with adult depression. When an adult is depressed, he or she will experience rapid eye movement (REM) sleep earlier in the sleep cycle than those who are not depressed.

Dr. Uma Rao, professor of psychiatry at UT Southwestern and lead author of the study, determined that adolescents with a familial risk for depression who lack a depression diagnosis experienced shorter REM latency. These adolescents were more likely to develop depression by the end of the study period than those who reached REM sleep later in the cycle.

“Sleep is probably more helpful in determining who is at risk for developing depression than in being a diagnostic marker for depression since REM latency of those adolescents was shorter before they even developed the illness,” Dr. Rao said, in Science Daily.

The study into adolescent depression is complex as prevention and treatment are determined by baseline levels of sleep and other factors that are not clearly defined. As a result, prevention and treatment continue to change as research results change.

“Comparing these younger adolescents to those already showing depression obscures study results and can affect our understanding of the underlying mechanisms for depression as well as its treatment,” Dr. Rao said.

“Long-term studies may be helpful in determining which research participants should be considered as part of the control group. This study is an initial step in determining baseline measures that differentiate healthy adolescents from those who are likely to develop depression, bipolar disorder and other mental diseases as they get older.”