Neuropsychological functions in Depression With Anxiety Disorders

This thesis address two of the most common psychiatric illnesses in the population world wide, namely Unipolar Major Depression (MDD), and the frequent co-occurrence of anxiety disorder (A). The high rates of both MDD and anxiety disorders in the population make the study of the co-occurrence of these two disorders highly relevant both for clinicians and the society. The presence of co-morbid anxiety disorders in persons with MDD has largely gone unexamined, especially regarding the effects on neuropsychological functioning. Both disorders are associated with cognitive deficits, but separate studies of MDD and A have shown conflicting findings related both to the functions affected and to the extent of cognitive deficits. Also, not all patients with MDD display neuropsychological deficits, and these mixed and often contradictory results may partly be explained by unaddressed co-morbid anxiety. Due to the heterogeneity and multifactorial symptoms in both MDD and A, and hence their co-morbidity (MDDA) it is important to broaden the understanding of the associated specific neuropsychological dysfunctions in MDDA. The clinical implications in MDD and A may lead to severe alternation