Overview
Major depression, also known as major depressive disorder, is a serious and often debilitating mood disorder defined by persistent low mood and loss of interest or pleasure, together with disturbances of sleep, appetite, energy, concentration, and self-worth, and at times thoughts of death or suicide, sustained over time and impairing daily life. It is highly prevalent and a leading contributor to disability worldwide, arising from the interplay of genetic, neurobiological, psychological, and social factors. Viewed through the lens of health statistics, major depression is studied by its frequency, severity, determinants, and outcomes across populations, with attention to how risk varies by gender, occupation, life stage, and environmental and socioeconomic exposures. Statistical and network analytic methods characterise the structure of depressive symptoms, identify core and activating features, and clarify associations with comorbid conditions and contextual factors such as environmental noise. Major depression frequently coexists with cognitive impairment and dementia, with chronic illness, pain, and cancer, and with related states such as apathy from which it must be distinguished; neurobiological correlates including cortisol dysregulation and medial temporal lobe atrophy have been described. Measurement of severity, including hopelessness and suicide risk, relies on validated instruments. By applying statistical approaches to the patterns, determinants, and burden of major depression, this field informs prevention and the evidence base for care.
Research published in this journal
11 peer-reviewed articles, ranked by relevance. Each links to its DOI.
Despair Beyond Repair? Severity of Hopelessness in Depressed Psychiatric Inpatients
The Effectiveness of Cognitive-Analytic Therapy in Women Diagnosed with Breast Cancer and Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder
SCL-90-R and Suicide Ideation in Torture and War Survivors Receiving Psychotherapy
Osteoarthritis Depression Impacts and Possible Solutions Among Older Adults: Year 2021-2022 in Review
Pain between Psyche and Soma in Uro-Andrology
Basal Serum Cortisol Levels, Depression and Medial Temporal Lobe Atrophy in Patients with Mild Cognitive Impairment and Alzheimer’s Disease
Differentiating Depression from Apathy in Chronic Kidney Disease: A Prospective Study
MRI Study and Psychological Assessment in Children and Youth with Deviation Behaviour
Photobiomodulation, Depression, Anxiety, and Cognition
How this research is being cited
The 11 articles above have been cited 23 times in the scholarly literature. Citation data via OpenAlex and Crossref, updated Jun 2026.
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2025 · Neuropsychiatric Disease and Treatment
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2025 · Neuropsychiatric Disease and Treatment
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2024 · American Journal of Kidney Diseases
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2023 · Comprehensive Psychiatry
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2023 · International journal of psychological research
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S. Guidotti et al. · 2023 · International Journal of Psychological Research
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2023 · Advanced Biology
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2023 · Comprehensive Psychiatry
A sample of recent works citing this journal's research on Major Depression, linking to each citing work.