Special Article
Provisional Diagnostic Criteria for Depression of Alzheimer Disease

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The authors, a group of investigators with extensive research and clinical experience related to both late-life depression and Alzheimer disease (AD), propose provisional affective and behavioral inclusion and exclusion diagnostic criteria for Depression of AD.

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DIAGNOSTIC CONSIDERATIONS

The determination of Depression of AD is predicated primarily on careful clinical assessment, rather than symptom rating scales. The clinician must 1) establish the diagnosis of Dementia of the Alzheimer Type (DAT), and 2) identify that there are clinically significant depressive symptoms. This will involve thorough clinical assessment, with consideration of the temporal associations between the onset and course of the depression and the dementia. Finally, the clinician must judge that the

CONCLUSIONS

The provisional diagnostic criteria for depression of AD form an attempt to define a group of individuals with AD whose depression is distinguishable from Major Depressive Disorder and Minor Depressive Disorder. The criteria are broad and rely on clinical judgment. Admittedly, there remains overlap between these syndromes, which, in fact, is a reflection of the state of knowledge in this area. Nevertheless, these criteria accomplish the goal of being a starting point that allows investigators

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