Prevalence and clinical correlates of psychotic depression in first-episode and drug-naive outpatients with major depressive disorder in a Chinese Han population

Background: Few systemic studies of psychotic depression (PD) have been conducted in first-episode and drug-naive (FEDN) patients. This study was to examine the prevalence of PD and its clinical correlates in a large sample of FEDN outpatients with major depressive disorder (MDD) in a Chinese Han population, which to our best knowledge has not been studied. Methods: In this cross-sectional study, a total of 1718 FEDN MDD outpatients were recruited. All patients were rated on the positive symptom subscale of the Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS) for psychotic symptoms, the 17-item Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (HAMD-17) for depression and Hamilton Anxiety Rating Scale (HAMA) for anxiety. Results: The prevalence of PD was 10.0% (171/1718) in MDD patients. Compared to the non-PD patients, PD patients had significantly older age, lower educational levels, higher anxiety symptom score and were more likely to attempt suicide. Further logistic regression analysis indicated that PD was associated with older age, suicide attempt and comorbid anxiety (all p < 0.05). Multiple regression analyses showed that both HAMD and HAMA total scores were significantly associated with PANSS positive symptom subscale score. Limitations: Our cross-sectional study design does not show a direct causal relationship between psychiatric symptoms and related factors in patients with MDD. Conclusions: Our results suggest a high prevalence of PD in MDD patients in the acute early stage in a Chinese Han population, which is associated with demographic variables and clinical symptoms.