0
October 1982, Vol 39, No. 10 >
Article | October 1982

Dexamethasone Suppression Test and Diagnosis of Melancholia

Stanley H. Schuman, MD, DrPH; Robert Malcolm, MD; Barry L. Hainer, MD
Arch Gen Psychiatry. 1982;39(10):1218. doi:10.1001/archpsyc.1982.04290100074015.
Text Size: A A A
Published online
Article
References
Comments

To the Editor.  — The dialogue between Carroll and two alert readers (Archives 1981;38:1067-1068) reflects two blind spots in the article on the dexamethasone suppression test (DST): (1) the logical dilemma, as pointed out by Murphy, of comparing a purely clinical descriptive diagnosis (the gold standard) with a newly advocated biologic marker laboratory test, and (2) the insensitivity of the authors, as pointed out by Cochran, to the uselessness of a diagnostic test that is only 50% sensitive.A third blind spot should be emphasized: the gap between the physician of first contact and the scientist at the tertiary center. When Carroll stated that "the routine use of this simple test byu internists, family practitioners, and psychiatrists who treat depressed patients may help to reduce the diagnostic confusion," he confused specificity, sensitivity, and common sense.

Sign In to Access Full Content

Don't have Access?

Register and get free email Table of Contents alerts, saved searches, PowerPoint downloads, CME quizzes, and more

Subscribe for full-text access to content from 1998 forward and a host of useful features

Activate your current subscription (AMA members and current subscribers)

Purchase Online Access to this article for 24 hours

First Page Preview

View Large
First page PDF preview

Figures

Tables

Interactive Graphics

Video

Country-Specific Mortality and Growth Failure in Infancy and Yound Children and Association With Material Stature

Use interactive graphics and maps to view and sort country-specific infant and early dhildhood mortality and growth failure data and their association with maternal

References

Correspondence

Submit a Letter
CME
Accreditation Information
The American Medical Association is accredited by the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education to provide continuing medical education for physicians. The AMA designates this journal-based CME activity for a maximum of 1 AMA PRA Category 1 CreditTM per course. Physicians should claim only the credit commensurate with the extent of their participation in the activity. Physicians who complete the CME course and score at least 80% correct on the quiz are eligible for AMA PRA Category 1 CreditTM.
Note: You must get at least of the answers correct to pass this quiz.
Clear Answers | Save For Later
You have not filled in all the answers to complete this quiz
The following questions were not answered:
Sorry, you have unsuccessfully completed this CME quiz with a score of
The following questions were not answered correctly:
Commitment to Change (optional):
Indicate what change(s) you will implement in your practice, if any, based on this CME course.
Your quiz results:
The filled radio buttons indicate your responses. The preferred responses are highlighted
For CME Course: A Proposed Model for Initial Assessment and Management of Acute Heart Failure Syndromes
Indicate what changes(s) you will implement in your practice, if any, based on this CME course.
NOTE:
Citing articles are presented as examples only. In non-demo SCM6 implementation, integration with CrossRef’s “Cited By” API will populate this tab (http://www.crossref.org/citedby.html).
Compression-Only CPR: Pushing the Science Forward
Cone
AAM 2010;304:1493-1495.
All you need to read in the other general journals
BMJ 2010;341:c5893-c1494.
Submit a Comment

Some tools below are only available to our subscribers or users with an online account.

Sign In to Access Full Content

Related Content

Customize your page view by dragging & repositioning the boxes below.

Jobs

More Listings at
JAMACareerCenter.com >

© 2013 American Medical Association. All Rights Reserved.
Powered bySilverchair Information Systems