DIFFERENCES IN EARLY-ADULTHOOD ATYPICAL DEPRESSION, BIOLOGICAL CHARACTERISTICS AND ANXIETY BY ADOLESCENT DEPRESSION TRAJECTORIES

Atypical depression (AD) has historically been characterized by early-onset, distinct biological characteristics, and higher comorbidity with anxiety.However, its developmental course remains understudied in a truly developmental design.The current study used data from the Avon Longitudinal Study of Children and Parents (ALSPAC, n = 4433) to identify depression trajectories (12-18 years) via latent class growth analysis (LCGA).Three classes emerged: early-onset, late-onset, and low-risk.Using the Bolck-Croon-Hagenaars (BCH) method, the relationship between the trajectories and AD, metabolic syndrome, CRP, BMI (age 24), and generalized anxiety (age 21) outcomes were analyzed.The early-onset class showed significantly higher AD than the other classes.While early-onset sample also had higher anxiety, metabolic syndrome, and BMI, these differences were not statistically significant despite small to medium effect sizes, possibly due to the small sample size of this trajectory (n = 140).Interestingly, AD was correlated with anxiety across all classes.These findings underscore the long-term impact of early-onset depression and the need for further research to clarify AD's etiology and correlates.