Crossmodal Audiovisual Emotional Integration in Depression: An Event-Related Potential Study

Depression is related to the defect of emotion processing, and people's emotional processing is crossmodal. This article aims to investigate whether there is a difference in audiovisual emotional integration between the depression group and the normal group using a high-resolution event-related potential (ERP) technique. We designed a visual and/or auditory detection task. The behavioral results showed that the responses to bimodal audiovisual stimuli were faster than those to unimodal auditory or visual stimuli, indicating that crossmodal integration of emotional information occurred in both the depression and normal groups. The ERP results showed that the N2 amplitude induced by sadness was significantly higher than that induced by happiness. The participants in the depression group showed larger amplitudes of N1 and P2, and the average amplitude of LPP evoked in the frontocentral lobe in the depression group was significantly lower than that in the normal group. The results indicated that there are different audiovisual emotional processing mechanisms between depressed and non-depressed college students.

Comparative Efficacy of Seven Exercise interventions for Symptoms of depression in college students: a network of meta-analysis

Background Depression among college students is common, exercise interventions are valued as one of the most widely prescribed interventions for depressed college students, however, it is especially difficult for university administrators to determine which exercise intervention is most effective, and efficacy of exercise interventions among depressed college students have not been evaluated. Objectives To systematically review and compare the efficacy of Seven Exercise interventions for Symptoms of depression in college students. Method A network of meta-analysis was conducted to fill the objectives. PubMed, Embase databases, and two Chinese language electronic databases WANFANG and CNKI were searched for the related articles. Eligibility criteria Randomized controlled trials comparing the efficacy of Seven Exercise interventions with usual care of college students with depression were included in the review. Main outcomes The Primary outcome of the present study were standardized mean difference(SMD) and the mean change of depressive symptoms. Results 14 trials were identified, including 2010 depressed college students. The result of direct meta-analysis of this review indicated exercise interventions overall had a significantly lower mean depression scores (SMD=-1.13) when compared with usual care. The result of NMA indicated when comparing with badminton intervention, yoga(SMD=-7.7, 95%CI -14 to -0.93) and tai chi (SMD=-9.4, 95%CI -16 to -2.7) can significantly decrease depression scores of the depressed college students. The rank of seven exercise interventions with respect to efficiently decrease symptom of depressed undergraduates was Tai chi > Yoga > Volleyball > Dance > Run> Basketball> Badminton, respectively. Conclusions Tai chi exhibited the highest probability that became the most efficacy intervention among the comparions, and Yoga showed the second most effectiveness to alleviate depressive symptoms of depressed college students, and dance ranks the third, followed by run, volleyball, basketball, badminton respectively.

Is there enough “interest in and pleasure in” the concept of depression? The development of the Leuven Affect and Pleasure Scale (LAPS)

ObjectivePresence of negative mood (depressed mood) and anhedonia (lack of interest and pleasure) are considered core symptoms of depression, while absence of positive mood is not taken into account. It is therefore remarkable that the depression scales routinely used to assess changes during antidepressant treatment (Hamilton Depression Rating Scale [HDRS], Montgomery–Åsberg Depression Rating Scale [MADRS]) do not really take into account anhedonia. Several scales were developed to assess positive mood and hedonic tone, but they only partially cover the multidimensional concept. Therefore we developed a new 16-item questionnaire, the Leuven Affect and Pleasure Scale (LAPS), to assess negative affect, positive affect, and hedonic tone.MethodsThis first article on the LAPS questionnaire reports on the correlations between the different items, on the factor analysis, and on the differences found in 3 groups of subjects : healthy college students (N=138), depressed but still functioning college students (N=27), and severely depressed inpatients (N=38). These differences were calculated using univariate general linear models with Bonferroni post-hoc testing, and effect sizes were expressed in η2.ResultsNegative and positive affect were only moderately correlated, and the 4 independent variables (cognitive functioning, overall functioning, meaningful life, and happiness) had stronger correlations with positive affect than with negative affect. The major difference in negative affect was between healthy college students and depressed college students, positive affect was different between the 3 groups, and the major difference for hedonic tone was between depressed college students and depressed inpatients. Affiliative positive affect and the affiliative hedonic function were well preserved, even in depressed inpatients.ConclusionsThis preliminary report suggests that the LAPS offers a comprehensive assessment of negative and positive affect, of hedonic tone, and of independent variables (cognitive functioning, overall functioning, meaningful life, and happiness). Clinically relevant differences in subscores were found in 3 groups of subjects with variable levels of depression (healthy subjects, mildly depressed subjects, and severely depressed inpatients).