Abstract: Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) has symptoms similar to those of mild to moderate clinical depression, and is common in places where there is seasonally less natural light. A probable cause of the disorder is deficient regulation of melatonin secretion. In contrast to what is the case in non-seasonal depression, memory impairments in SAD are insufficiently studied. Similar impairments to those shown in non-seasonal depression have been shown, but studies are generally to small for reaching statistical significance, and tests employed lack resolution to describe impairments in sufficient detail. A review of available literature is herein reported.

Key words: Seasonal Affective Disorder, clinical depression, memory impairments, melatonin secretion