Low serum zinc level in dpression

BACKGROUND: Major Depressive Disorder (MDD) is a common disorder, with a lifetime prevalence of about 15 percent, perhaps as high as 25 percent for women. The etiology of MDD is too complex to be explained totally by a single social, developmental, or biological theory. A variety of factors appear to work together to cause or precipitate depressive disorders. Various functions have been reported for trace elements such as zink in recovery or exacerbation of depression. METHODS: In this experimental study, we studied 46 patients with MDD based on DSM IV criteria, among the patients referred to mental disorders clininc of Noor Hospital. Twenty Patients were men and 26 were women. Thirty two volunteers of general population were evaluated for depression with Beck depression test who did not show any depressive symptoms with this test. A blood sample of 5cc was obtained from each person and the serum zinc concentration was measured. Data gathered and analyzed with SPSS, logistic regression and chi-squar tests. RESULTS: Serum zinc concentrations were 74 to 130 mg/dl in men and 60 to 128 mg/dl in women of control group. Serum zinc concentration was 30 to 60 mg/dl in depressive patients that it was lower in women than men. The difference between serum zinc concentrations of normal and depressive persons was meaningful (P = 0.02). CONCLUSION: In our study, the serum concentration of zinc was about half of normal value. This study replicates previous findings that major depressed subjects show significantly lowered serum zinc concentration. KEYWORDS: Depression, zinc.