Duration of periods of euthymia in patients with dysthymic disorder.

Dunner, D L · Am J Psychiatry · 1999

case_series · Level IV

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Abstract

The purpose of this study was to assess the duration of periods of euthymia in patients with dysthymia. All patients with dysthymia who came to the Center for Anxiety and Depression over a 10-month period (N = 22) were interviewed by the author regarding the duration of their euthymic episodes. The 22 patients with dysthymia reported euthymic periods from 2 to 30 days (mean = 8.0 days, SD = 6.6). The euthymic period of up to 2 months that is specified in DSM-IV for dysthymic disorder might confound the results of clinical trials. Data from additional groups of dysthymic patients would be useful when considering this issue for DSM-V.

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