The connection between dysthymic disorder and these medical conditions is unclear, but it may be related to the way the medical condition and/or its pharmacological treatment affects neurotransmitters.
Someone can actually suffer from Dysthymic Disorder for years.
While major depressive episodes may be acute (intense but short-lived), dysthymic disorder is an ongoing, chronic depression that lasts two or more years (one or more years in children) and has an average duration of 16 years.
Parents of children suffering from dysthymic disorder may notice their child experience a fall in grades and a lack of interest in extracurricular activities that were once enjoyable.
Dysthymic disorder, characterized by a chronic but mild state of depression lasting two years or more, affects 1.5 percent of the U.S. population, or 5.7 million adults, each year.