Loading…
Presentation comparison
Urgent3 of 7 diagnoses compared
| CriteriaComparison detail | Major depressive disorderEmergency |
|---|
Sustained mood syndrome with guilt, hopelessness, reduced energy, impaired concentration, change in sleep/appetite.
Clinical reference — not validated decision support. Review before use.
| Bipolar depressionUrgent |
|---|
| Psychotic depressionUrgent |
|---|
| Persistent depressive disorderUrgentNot selected |
|---|
| Substance- or medication-induced depressionUrgentNot selected |
|---|
| Depression due to medical conditionUrgentNot selected |
|---|
| GriefUrgentNot selected |
|---|
| Why it fits | Low mood and/or anhedonia with biological, cognitive, functional change for 2+ weeks | Recurrent depression, early onset, family history, atypical features, antidepressant activation | Severe depression with nihilistic, somatic, guilt, punishment, poverty delusions | Chronic low mood, low self-esteem, pessimism, reduced vitality over years | Temporal link to intoxication, withdrawal, or medication change. Caused by: Alcohol, cannabis, stimulants, benzos, steroids, isotretinoin, interferon, beta blockers | First-onset depression with atypical cognitive/neurological features or systemic context. Look for: Hypothyroidism, Parkinson disease, stroke, Cushing, B12 deficiency, sleep apnoea | Loss-centred, wave-like, preserved self-worth vs full syndromal depression |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| What argues against | Applies to the whole presentationReview locally. | ||||||
| Must-not-miss | Suicide risk, psychosis, catatonia, refusal of intake, severe self-neglect | Mixed features, high suicide risk, antidepressant-induced switching | High suicide risk, refusal of food/fluid, catatonia | Hidden chronic suicidality, double depression | |||
| Bedside question | Applies to the whole presentationSustained mood syndrome with guilt, hopelessness, reduced energy, impaired concentration, change in sleep/appetite. | ||||||
| Immediate action | Applies to the whole presentationStabilise and reassess. | ||||||
| Investigations | Applies to the whole presentationGuided by presentation. | ||||||
| Mimics / overlap | Applies to the whole presentationReview overlap locally. | ||||||
Scroll horizontally to review more candidate differentials. Clinical reference — not validated decision support. Review before use.
Review locally.
Sustained mood syndrome with guilt, hopelessness, reduced energy, impaired concentration, change in sleep/appetite.
Stabilise and reassess.
Guided by presentation.
Review overlap locally.
Low mood and/or anhedonia with biological, cognitive, functional change for 2+ weeks
Suicide risk, psychosis, catatonia, refusal of intake, severe self-neglect
Recurrent depression, early onset, family history, atypical features, antidepressant activation
Mixed features, high suicide risk
Severe depression with nihilistic, somatic, guilt, punishment, poverty delusions
High suicide risk, refusal of food/fluid,
Safety first. Act early.
Create a concise comparison summary for documentation or handoff.
Source pending review
v10 | Local content only
Last updated: Pending review
Open a selected differential to review its clinical record.
Based on current selection
Create a concise comparison summary for documentation or handoff.
Source pending review
v10 | Local content only
Last updated: Pending review
| Late-life first depression, focal signs, endocrine features |
| Persistent functional collapse, suicidality, severe self-blame, psychosis |