A CROSS-SECTIONAL COMPARATIVE STUDY OF LIPID PROFILE IN MAJOR ENDOGENOUS DEPRESSIVE DISORDER PATIENTS ATTENDING PSYCHIATRIC OPD WITH MATCHED NORMAL CONTROLS
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Abstract
Major Depressive Disorder (MDD) is a mood disorder associated with significant alterations in lipid metabolism. Dyslipidemia may contribute to the pathogenesis of depression and is also a risk factor for cardiovascular disease. This study compares lipid profiles between MDD patients and age- and sex-matched healthy controls to explore their potential role as biomarkers.
Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted on patients attending the Psychiatry Outpatient Department (OPD) who were diagnosed with major endogenous depressive disorder, alongside age- and sex-matched healthy controls. Following ethical clearance and informed consent, lipid profiles were assessed using fasting blood samples. Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (HAM-D) was used to quantify depressive severity.
Results: Patients with MDD had significantly higher levels of total cholesterol (198.37 ± 34.51 mg/dL vs. 162.13 ± 34.14 mg/dL; p = 0.0001), LDL (123.97 ± 27.87 mg/dL vs. 99.97 ± 32.52 mg/dL; p = 0.003), triglycerides (192.37 ± 122.84 mg/dL vs. 132.20 ± 39.41 mg/dL; p = 0.013), and VLDL (38.46 ± 24.56 mg/dL vs. 26.44 ± 7.88 mg/dL; p = 0.013). HDL levels were lower in the MDD group but not statistically significant (p = 0.159). Female patients exhibited significantly higher triglyceride and VLDL levels than males (p = 0.03). No significant correlation was found between lipid levels and HAM-D scores or depression severity.
References
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32. Oxenkrug GF, Branconnier RJ, Harto-Truax N, Cole JO. Is serum cholesterol a biological marker for major depressive disorder?. The American journal of psychiatry. 1983 Jul 1;140(7):920-1.
2. TAJ S, Tabassum A, Ali H, RASOOL G, Usman M. Frequency of depression in patient coming to medical outpatient department. Journal of Pharmaceutical Negative Results. 2022 Oct 8;13.
3. Opara MS. The Effect of an Educational Intervention on Adult Women with Major Depressive Disorder. Brandman University; 2020.
4. Ahad A, Chahar P, Haque E, Bey A, Jain M, Raja W. Factors affecting the prevalence of stress, anxiety, and depression in undergraduate Indian dental students. Journal of education and health promotion. 2021 Jan 1;10(1):266.
5. Solmi M, Radua J, Olivola M, Croce E, Soardo L, Salazar de Pablo G, Il Shin J, Kirkbride JB, Jones P, Kim JH, Kim JY. Age at onset of mental disorders worldwide: large-scale meta-analysis of 192 epidemiological studies. Molecular psychiatry. 2022 Jan;27(1):281-95.
6. Weavers B, Heron J, Thapar AK, Stephens A, Lennon J, Jones RB, Eyre O, Anney RJ, Collishaw S, Thapar A, Rice F. The antecedents and outcomes of persistent and remitting adolescent depressive symptom trajectories: a longitudinal, population-based English study. The Lancet Psychiatry. 2021 Dec 1;8(12):1053-61.
7. Dao AT, Nguyen VT, Nguyen HV, Nguyen LT. Factors associated with depression among the elderly living in urban Vietnam. BioMed research international. 2018;2018(1):2370284.
8. Mirkena Y, Reta MM, Haile K, Nassir Z, Sisay MM. Prevalence of depression and associated factors among older adults at ambo town, Oromia region, Ethiopia. BMC psychiatry. 2018 Oct 18;18(1):338.
9. Freak-Poli R, Ryan J, Neumann JT, Tonkin A, Reid CM, Woods RL, Nelson M, Stocks N, Berk M, McNeil JJ, Britt C. Social isolation, social support and loneliness as predictors of cardiovascular disease incidence and mortality. BMC geriatrics. 2021 Dec 13;21(1):711.
10. Smith-Nielsen J, Matthey S, Lange T, Væver MS. Validation of the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale against both DSM-5 and ICD-10 diagnostic criteria for depression. BMC psychiatry. 2018 Dec 20;18(1):393.
11. Park SC, Kim YK. Challenges and strategies for current classifications of depressive disorders: proposal for future diagnostic standards. Major depressive disorder: rethinking and understanding recent discoveries. 2021 Apr 9:103-16.
12. Maciaszek J, Rymaszewska J, Wieczorek T, Piotrowski P, Szcześniak D, Beszłej JA, Małecka M, Bogudzińska B, Senczyszyn A, Siwicki D, Biercewicz M. Preliminary findings of a randomized controlled trial investigating the efficacy of transcranial magnetic stimulation in treatment-resistant depression: a post-hoc analysis on the role of co-occurring personality disorders. Frontiers in Psychiatry. 2024 Nov 11;15:1363984.
13. Baig-Ward KM, Jha MK, Trivedi MH. The individual and societal burden of treatment-resistant depression: an overview. Psychiatric Clinics. 2023 Jun 1;46(2):211-26.
14. Galkina OV, Vetrovoy OV, Krasovskaya IE, Eschenko ND. Role of lipids in regulation of neuroglial interactions. Biochemistry (Moscow). 2023 Mar;88(3):337-52.
15. Incontro S, Musella ML, Sammari M, Di Scala C, Fantini J, Debanne D. Lipids shape brain function through ion channel and receptor modulations: physiological mechanisms and clinical perspectives. Physiological Reviews. 2025 Jan 1;105(1):137-207.
16. Wei YG, Cai DB, Liu J, Liu RX, Wang SB, Tang YQ, Zheng W, Wang F. Cholesterol and triglyceride levels in first-episode patients with major depressive disorder: A meta-analysis of case-control studies. Journal of Affective Disorders. 2020 Apr 1;266:465-72.
17. Sun N, Liu Z, Sun L, Sun F, Sun L, Zhang J, Yang R, Yao G, Liu Y. Higher levels of total cholesterol/high-density lipoprotein cholesterol ratios are associated with an increased risk of suicidal behavior in children and adolescents with depressive disorders. Frontiers in Psychiatry. 2025 Mar 12;16:1557451.
18. Alzoubi A, Abunaser R, Khassawneh A, Alfaqih M, Khasawneh A, Abdo N. The bidirectional relationship between diabetes and depression: a literature review. Korean journal of family medicine. 2018 May 18;39(3):137.
19. Han AL. Association between lipid ratio and depression: a cross-sectional study. Scientific Reports. 2022 Apr 13;12(1):6190.
20. Cano-Ibánez N, Serra-Majem L, Martín-Peláez S, Martínez-González MÁ, Salas-Salvadó J, Corella D, Lassale C, Martínez JA, Alonso-Gómez ÁM, Wärnberg J, Vioque J. Dietary diversity and depression: cross-sectional and longitudinal analyses in Spanish adult population with metabolic syndrome. Findings from PREDIMED-Plus trial. Public health nutrition. 2023 Mar;26(3):598-610.
21. Ogbo FA, Mathsyaraja S, Koti RK, Perz J, Page A. The burden of depressive disorders in South Asia, 1990–2016: findings from the global burden of disease study. BMC psychiatry. 2018 Oct 16;18(1):333.
22. Sadeghi M, Roohafza H, Afshar H, Rajabi F, Ramzani M, Shemirani H, Sarafzadeghan N. Relationship between depression and apolipoproteins A and B: a case-control study. Clinics. 2011;66:113-7.
23. Moreira FP, Jansen K, de Azevedo Cardoso T, Mondin TC, da Silva Magalhaes PV, Kapczinski F, de Mattos Souza LD, da Silva RA, Oses JP, Wiener CD. Metabolic syndrome in subjects with bipolar disorder and major depressive disorder in a current depressive episode: population-based study: metabolic syndrome in current depressive episode. Journal of psychiatric research. 2017 Sep 1;92:119-23.
24. Gupta R, Solanki RK, Dubey V, Midha PK, Pathak V. Association of lipid profile with depressive features in young hypertensives. Journal of Pakistan Psychiatric Society. 2008 Dec 31;5(2):101-4.
25. Sharma S, Shrestha L, Ojha SP, Jha B. Status of serum lipids in individuals with depression. Annals of Clinical Chemistry and Laboratory Medicine. 2016 May 3;2(1):24-7.
26. Liang Y, Yan Z, Cai C, Jiang H, Song A, Qiu C. Association between lipid profile and depressive symptoms among Chinese older people: mediation by cardiovascular diseases?. International journal of behavioral medicine. 2014 Aug;21(4):590-6.
27. Ahn EJ, Choi JS, Jang YL, Lee HW, Sim HB. Heart Rate Variability and Lipid Profile in Patients with Major Depressive Disorder. Sleep Medicine and Psychophysiology. 2012;19(1):27-34.
28. Morgan RE, Palinkas LA, Barrett-Connor EL, Wingard DL. Plasma cholesterol and depressive symptoms in older men. The Lancet. 1993 Jan 9;341(8837):75-9.
29. Segers MJ, Mertens C. Relationships between anxiety, depression self-ratings and CHD risk factors among obese, normal and lean individuals. Journal of psychosomatic research. 1976 Jan 1;20(1):25-35.
30. Van Reedt Dortland AK, Giltay EJ, van Veen T, van Pelt J, Zitman FG, Penninx BW. Associations between serum lipids and major depressive disorder: results from the Netherlands Study of Depression and Anxiety (NESDA). Journal of Clinical Psychiatry. 2010 Jun 6;71(6):729.
31. Enko D, Brandmayr W, Halwachs-Baumann G, Schnedl WJ, Meinitzer A, Kriegshäuser G. Prospective plasma lipid profiling in individuals with and without depression. Lipids in health and disease. 2018 Jun 26;17(1):149.
32. Oxenkrug GF, Branconnier RJ, Harto-Truax N, Cole JO. Is serum cholesterol a biological marker for major depressive disorder?. The American journal of psychiatry. 1983 Jul 1;140(7):920-1.
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Jun 10, 2025
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Dr. M. Venkatesh, Dr. R. G. Enoch, & Dr. R. Aravazhi. (2025). A CROSS-SECTIONAL COMPARATIVE STUDY OF LIPID PROFILE IN MAJOR ENDOGENOUS DEPRESSIVE DISORDER PATIENTS ATTENDING PSYCHIATRIC OPD WITH MATCHED NORMAL CONTROLS. Journal of Population Therapeutics and Clinical Pharmacology, 32(6), 1687-1695. https://doi.org/10.53555/6dbtas97
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Author Biographies
Dr. M. Venkatesh
Associate Professor, Department of General Medicine, Government Theni Medical College and Hospital, Theni, Tamil Nadu-625512, India
Dr. R. G. Enoch
Assistant Professor, Department of Psychiatry, Government Theni Medical College and Hospital, Theni, Tamil Nadu-625512, India.
Dr. R. Aravazhi
Assistant Professor, Department of Cardiology, Government Theni Medical College and Hospital, Theni, Tamil Nadu-625512, India.
How to Cite
Dr. M. Venkatesh, Dr. R. G. Enoch, & Dr. R. Aravazhi. (2025). A CROSS-SECTIONAL COMPARATIVE STUDY OF LIPID PROFILE IN MAJOR ENDOGENOUS DEPRESSIVE DISORDER PATIENTS ATTENDING PSYCHIATRIC OPD WITH MATCHED NORMAL CONTROLS. Journal of Population Therapeutics and Clinical Pharmacology, 32(6), 1687-1695. https://doi.org/10.53555/6dbtas97