Abstract
The essential features of major depressive disorder in adults are present in children and adolescents. It would seem logical, therefore, that the biological correlates of this mood disorder that are observed in adults may also be found in depressed children. This article summarizes the available studies on neuroendocrinologic, polysomnographic, and neurochemical abnormalities in children and adolescents with major depression. The results are still largely contradictory and inconclusive. Additional research, including studies with direct comparisons of adults and children using uniform methodology, division into diagnostic and symptomatic subgroups, and examination of comorbid psychiatric disorders and symptoms, will be needed before the biology of depression in children can be usefully compared with the manifestations of these symptoms in adults.
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