Diagnosis and Treatment of Chronic Depression

From our regular book review column.

The concept of chronic depression is complex; the clinical condition it entails is probably underreported; its costs, both human and economic, are high and growing; and its treatment, prevention, and prognosis are tremendously elusive. The editors of this volume, well-known clinical researchers, have assembled a group of 18 contributors, mostly from the New York area, to enlarge on several journal articles published in 1993 and to distill, according to Allen Frances in the Foreword, "all that is known about chronic depression." In spite of this obvious overstatement, the book asks interesting questions about chronic depression and generates enough interest in some research areas to wish for a continuous exploration.