[Similarities and differences between depression and epilepsy--a comparison trial].

The submitted paper is a preliminary trial of comparison between two illnesses: depression (or affective disorders) and epilepsy. Despite specific phenotypical differences determining the diagnostic and classification belongings there are a lot of similarities or common elements between both groups of disorders. Special stress was put on the bioelectrical background or phenomena accompanying epilepsy and depression. Current knowledge about biochemical and structural background of depression is wide and enough well recognized. In contrast, studies on bioelectric conditions of depressive disorders are quite poor, despite the fact that the bioelectric phenomena are--beside biochemical processes--the immanent feature of nervous cells. Currently--apart from the kindling phenomenon--there is a lack of theories or hypotheses trying to explain the origin of depression (affective disorders) with perturbation of bioelectrical functions in neurons. Certain bioelectrical phenomena accompanying the different forms of antidepressant therapy (e.g. changing in the threshold level) are recognized as accidental side effects or not possessing the clinical meaning. The analysis conducted shows a necessity of intensifying experimental and clinical investigations over explaining the usefulness of the electric phenomena in the pathomechanism of depressive disorders.