Does cognitive behaviour therapy have an enduring effect that is superior to keeping patients on continuation pharmacotherapy? A meta-analysis

Long-term outcomes of once weekly v. twice weekly sessions of cognitive behavioral therapy and interpersonal psychotherapy for depression

BACKGROUND

Twice weekly sessions of cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) and interpersonal psychotherapy (IPT) for major depressive disorder (MDD) lead to less drop-out and quicker and better response compared to once weekly sessions at posttreatment, but it is unclear whether these effects hold over the long run.

AIMS

Compare the effects of twice weekly v. weekly sessions of CBT and IPT for depression up to 24 months since the start of treatment.

METHODS

Using a 2 × 2 factorial design, this multicentre study randomized 200 adults with MDD to once or twice weekly sessions of CBT or IPT over 16-24 weeks, up to a maximum of 20 sessions. Main outcome measures were depression severity, measured with the Beck Depression Inventory-II and the Longitudinal Interval Follow-up Evaluation. Intention-to-treat analyses were conducted.

RESULTS

Compared with patients who received once weekly sessions, patients who received twice weekly sessions showed a significant decrease in depressive symptoms up through month 9, but this effect was no longer apparent at month 24. Patients who received CBT showed a significantly larger decrease in depressive symptoms up to month 24 compared to patients who received IPT, but the between-group effect size at month 24 was small. No differential effects between session frequencies or treatment modalities were found in response or relapse rates.

CONCLUSIONS

Although a higher session frequency leads to better outcomes in the acute phase of treatment, the difference in depression severity dissipated over time and there was no significant difference in relapse.

Treatments for partial remission of major depressive disorder: a systematic review and meta-analysis

QUESTION

Partial remission of major depressive disorder (MDD) is a debilitating and distressing clinical state related to chronicity, morbidity and relapse. Although one-third of patients remit partially, evidence for treatment efficacy is unclear. We provide an overview of treatment options and their efficacy.

STUDY SELECTION AND ANALYSIS

Embase, PsycINFO, Medline and SCOPUS were systematically searched through February 2023. Included were randomised controlled trials (RCTs) examining any treatment in patients with partially remitted MDD aged 13-65 years, reporting data on severity, remission or relapse.

FINDINGS

Seven RCTs examining psychotherapy including 1024 patients were eligible. There were not enough RCTs to examine effects of pharmacotherapy. Psychotherapy was associated with lower depressive symptom severity at post-treatment (Hedges' g=0.50; 95% CI 0.23 to 0.76), but not at follow-up up to 1 year (Hedges' g=0.36; 95% CI -0.30 to 1.02) or longer (Hedges' g=0.02; 95% CI -0.09 to 0.12). Psychotherapy was associated with superior remission rates at post-treatment (OR 2.57; 95% CI 1.71 to 3.87) and follow-up 6 months or longer (OR 1.75; 95% CI 1.21 to 2.53), although not with improved relapse rates at post-treatment (OR 0.17; 95% CI 0.01 to 4.83) or follow-up 6 months or longer (OR 0.46; 95% CI 0.21 to 1.03). Overall methodological quality was poor.

CONCLUSIONS

Psychotherapy targeting partial remission may be effective in lowering depressive symptom severity and patients may potentially achieve full remission twice as likely. Yet, long-term and prophylactic effects are lacking. Given the risk of chronicity, more high-quality RCTs are needed.

PROSPERO REGISTRATION NUMBER

CRD42020188451.

Cognitive behavioural therapy for functional abdominal pain disorders in children and adolescents: A systematic review of randomized controlled trials

AIM

Although Cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) potentially holds efficacy in addressing functional abdominal pain disorders (FAPDs) amongst children and adolescents, the persistent efficacy is uncertain.

METHODS

We searched three databases to identify related randomized controlled trials (RCTs). Meta-analysis was performed using RevMan and Stata. Subgroup analyses were mainly conducted based on follow-up time. The GRADE approach was used to evaluate the certainty of the evidence.

RESULTS

A total of 14 RCTs evaluating 858 patients were included. All RCTs were rated as having a high risk of bias. Compared with control groups, CBT was associated with improvement of general functional impairment (standardized mean difference (SMD) = -0.77, 95% CI [-1.12, -0.42], p < 0.05), higher treatment success (relative risk (RR) = 2.35, 95% CI [1.50, 3.69], p < 0.05), improvement of abdominal pain symptoms (SMD = -0.48, 95% CI [-0.73, -0.23], p < 0.05), QoL (SMD = 0.42, 95% CI [0.20, 0.64], p < 0.05), and psychological states (SMD = -0.95, 95% CI [-1.62, -0.27], p < 0.05).

CONCLUSION

This meta-analysis provides low to moderate quality evidence that CBT could significantly improve clinical outcomes and QoL for children and adolescents with FAPDs with improvement persisting until short-term follow-up. However, there were discrepancies regarding CBT's effects at mid- and long-term follow-up across different outcomes. More high-quality and longer-duration studies are thus warranted to explore the effectiveness of CBT in the future.

SYSTEMATIC REVIEW REGISTRATION ON PROSPERO

CRD42022369353.

Identifying active ingredients in cognitive-behavioral therapies: What if we didn't?

Identifying active ingredients of psychological interventions is a major goal of psychotherapy researchers that is often justified by the promise that it will lead to improved patient outcomes. Much of this "active ingredients" research is conducted within randomized controlled trials (RCTs) with patient populations, putting it in Phase T2 of the clinical-translational spectrum. I argue that RCTs in patient populations are very "messy laboratories" in which to conduct active ingredient work and that T0 and T1 research provide more controlled contexts. However, I call attention to the long road from identifying active ingredients of CBTs, whether in T0, T1, or T2 research, to improving outcomes. Dissemination and implementation research (T3 and T4 approaches) may be conceptually closer to improving outcomes. Given how common and disabling mental health symptoms are, I argue that if researchers want to improve patient outcomes, these research programs must receive more attention including work on the uptake of psychological interventions as well as work on optimal ordering of existing interventions.

Associations between psychological therapy outcomes for depression and incidence of dementia

BACKGROUND

Depression is an important, potentially modifiable dementia risk factor. However, it is not known whether effective treatment of depression through psychological therapies is associated with reduced dementia incidence. The aim of this study was to investigate associations between reduction in depressive symptoms following psychological therapy and the subsequent incidence of dementia.

METHODS

National psychological therapy data were linked with hospital records of dementia diagnosis for 119808 people aged 65+. Participants received a course of psychological therapy treatment in Improving Access to Psychological Therapies (IAPT) services between 2012 and 2019. Cox proportional hazards models were run to test associations between improvement in depression following psychological therapy and incidence of dementia diagnosis up to eight years later.

RESULTS

Improvements in depression following treatment were associated with reduced rates of dementia diagnosis up to 8 years later (HR = 0.88, 95% CI 0.83-0.94), after adjustment for key covariates. Strongest effects were observed for vascular dementia (HR = 0.86, 95% CI 0.77-0.97) compared with Alzheimer's disease (HR = 0.91, 95% CI 0.83-1.00).

CONCLUSIONS

Reliable improvement in depression across psychological therapy was associated with reduced incidence of future dementia. Results are consistent with at least two possibilities. Firstly, psychological interventions to improve symptoms of depression may have the potential to contribute to dementia risk reduction efforts. Secondly, psychological therapies may be less effective in people with underlying dementia pathology or they may be more likely to drop out of therapy (reverse causality). Tackling the under-representation of older people in psychological therapies and optimizing therapy outcomes is an important goal for future research.

Development and preliminary validation of the treatment adherence rating scale

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES

Patient adherence to treatment is an important barrier to the implementation of evidence-based psychological treatments (EBPTs). There is a need for simple and deployable measures of patient adherence to treatment for use across EBPTs. The Treatment Adherence Rating Scale (TARS) was developed and validated in two samples.

METHODS

This study includes two samples: adults with Major Depressive Disorder who received Cognitive Therapy for depression (Sample 1; N = 48, mean age = 44.27 years), and at-risk adolescents who received either the Transdiagnostic Sleep and Circadian Intervention or Psychoeducation (Sample 2; N = 176, mean age = 14.77 years). Factor structure of the TARS scores was examined via Exploratory Factor Analyses (EFA) in Sample 1 and Confirmatory Factor Analyses (CFA) in Sample 2. Internal consistency, predictive validity, and construct validity of the TARS scores were examined.

RESULTS

Results from EFA in Sample 1 supported a one-factor model. Results from CFA in Sample 2 suggested that a two-factor model (i.e., agreement and compliance) fit better than a one-factor model. TARS scores from both samples demonstrated adequate predictive validity with primary clinical outcomes and construct validity with treatment expectations.

LIMITATIONS

The sample was small with two specific populations. Future research should focus on other patient populations, a larger population, and other EBPTs. Future research examining patient ratings of these items are needed for further validation of the TARS.

CONCLUSIONS

Preliminary findings support the use of a two-factor model and highlight the potential utility of a simple measure of patient adherence to treatment across age and diagnostic groups.

Clinical Practice Guideline: The Diagnosis and Treatment of Unipolar Depression—National Disease Management Guideline

BACKGROUND

Depression is one of the most common mental disorders worldwide. The German National Disease Management Guideline on Unipolar Depression (NDGM), (Nationale Versorgungsleitlinie, NVL), updated in 2022, contains recommendations on the diagnosis and treatment of acute and chronic depressive disorders.

METHODS

The update was based on the findings of a systematic review of the evidence (2013-2022) and was issued by a multidisciplinary panel after a formalized consensus process.

RESULTS

The structure of the guideline was fundamentally revised and is now based on the phases of depression and/or its treatment, as well as on the severity of the disease. There is newly added material with recommendations on Internet- and mobile-device based treatments, esketamine, repetitive magnetic stimulation, psychosocial therapies, rehabilitation, social participation, and complex forms of care. The guideline also emphasizes better coordination of all services in the care of patients with depression. This article covers the most important changes and additions among the 156 recommendations in the guideline. More information and accompanying materials are available at www.leitlinien.de/depression.

CONCLUSION

There are effective treatments for depression and a variety of supportive measures that can be applied with great benefit by primary care physicians, psychiatrists, psychotherapists, and complementary care providers. The updated guideline aims to further improve the early detection, definitive diagnosis, treatment, and interdisciplinary care of people with depression.

The development and internal evaluation of a predictive model to identify for whom Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy (MBCT) offers superior relapse prevention for recurrent depression versus maintenance antidepressant medication

Depression is highly recurrent, even following successful pharmacological and/or psychological intervention. We aimed to develop clinical prediction models to inform adults with recurrent depression choosing between antidepressant medication (ADM) maintenance or switching to Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy (MBCT). Using data from the PREVENT trial (N=424), we constructed prognostic models using elastic net regression that combined demographic, clinical and psychological factors to predict relapse at 24 months under ADM or MBCT. Only the ADM model (discrimination performance: AUC=.68) predicted relapse better than baseline depression severity (AUC=.54; one-tailed DeLong's test: z=2.8, p=.003). Individuals with the poorest ADM prognoses who switched to MBCT had better outcomes compared to those who maintained ADM (48% vs. 70% relapse, respectively; superior survival times [z=-2.7, p=.008]). For individuals with moderate-to-good ADM prognosis, both treatments resulted in similar likelihood of relapse. If replicated, the results suggest that predictive modeling can inform clinical decision-making around relapse prevention in recurrent depression.

Irving Kirsch opens a window on antidepressant medications

When it comes to antidepressant medications - popular, backbone drugs of modern psychiatry - even learned scholars and savvy clinicians find it difficult to separate honest, rigorous research from that which thrives on hidden agendas and ulterior motives. Fortunately, a mounting corpus of data-based studies, mostly meta-analyses, casts new and critical light on the clinical efficacy, side effects, and therapeutic outcomes of antidepressants. Spearheading these efforts over the past few decades, Irving Kirsch and colleagues have challenged the hegemonic view of antidepressants as an effective therapeutic intervention. Notably, Kirsch illuminates the small difference between antidepressants and placebos in mitigating depression-a difference that may be statistically significant yet fails to reach clinical significance. This piece sketches the important contributions Kirsch has made to the scientific understanding of antidepressant medications.

A meta-analysis of CBT efficacy for depression comparing adults and older adults

INTRODUCTION

This meta-analysis investigates CBT treatment efficacy fordepression, and compares outcomes between adults (young and middle aged) and older adults (OA).

METHODOLOGY

Effect sizes (Hedges' g) were obtained from 37 peer-reviewed RCTs, 25 adult papers (participant n = 2948) and 12 OA papers (participant n = 551), and analysed with the random effects model.

RESULTS

No significant difference between age groups is reported in terms of CBT efficacy for depression compared to other treatments (Q_between (1) = 0.06, p = .89), with the overall effect favouring CBT over any other treatments (g = 0.48, 95 % CI = 0.29-0.68). The same pattern of results was found when restricting studies to those which used active control conditions (Q_between (1) = 0.03, p = .86) or passive control conditions (Q (1) = 2.45, p = .12).

DISCUSSION

No significant differences in efficacy for CBT treatment for depression are found when comparing adults and OA. CBT is as efficacious with OA as with adults.

Symptom improvement and remission in untreated adults seeking treatment for obsessive-compulsive disorder: A systematic review and meta-analysis

Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) is a common psychiatric condition that results in significant distress and impairment, and high societal costs. OCD is widely considered to be a chronic condition, however, our understanding of the chronicity of the disorder, and the incidence of spontaneous remission, has largely relied on longitudinal studies of individuals who have received treatment. The aim of the current study is to examine symptom improvement and rate of spontaneous remission in individuals with OCD who were assigned to a no-treatment control group within a randomized controlled trial using a meta-analytic approach. Twelve studies (n = 282; mean age = 35.52; 60.03 % female) were included in the meta-analysis. The pooled within-group effect size was negligible (g = -0.14; 95 % CI [-0.25, -0.04]) and only 4 % of participants demonstrated spontaneous remission across an average of 10.92 weeks (event rate = 0.04; [95 % CI: 0.01, 0.11]). Sample size and duration of OCD symptoms significantly moderated the effect size for symptom change. No moderators were found for symptom remission. The findings add to the small body of literature demonstrating that OCD has a chronic and unremitting course without treatment.

Testosterone Replacement Therapy in the Treatment of Depression

BACKGROUND

Depression is a common disorder that affects millions globally and is linked to reduced quality of life and mortality. Its pathophysiology is complex and there are several forms of treatment proposed in the literature with differing side effect profiles. Many patients do not respond to treatment which warrants augmentation with other treatments and the investigation of novel treatments. One of these treatments includes testosterone therapy which evidence suggests might improve depressed mood in older patients with low levels of testosterone and helps restore physical impairments caused by age-related hormonal changes.

OBJECTIVE

The objective of this review is to synthesize information regarding clinical depression, its treatment options, and the efficacy and safety of testosterone treatment for the treatment of depression.

METHODS

This review utilized comprehensive secondary and tertiary data analysis across many academic databases and published work pertaining to the topic of interest.

RESULTS

Within some subpopulations such as men with dysthymic disorder, treatment resistant depression, or low testosterone levels, testosterone administration yielded positive results in the treatment of depression. Additionally, rodent models have shown that administering testosterone to gonadectomized male animals reduces symptoms of depression. Conversely, some studies have found no difference in depressive symptoms after treatment with testosterone when compared with placebo. It was also noted that over administration of testosterone is associated with multiple adverse effects and complications.

CONCLUSION

The current evidence provides mixed conclusions on the effectiveness of testosterone therapy for treating depression. More research is needed in adult men to see if declining testosterone levels directly influence the development of depression.

Long-term outcomes at 24- and 36-month follow-up in the intervention arm of the randomized controlled trial of Prompt Mental Health Care

BACKGROUND

Whether long-term symptom improvement is maintained after treatment in services such as the Norwegian Prompt Mental Health Care (PMHC) and the English Improving Access to Psychological Therapies is not yet known. In this prospective study, we investigate whether improvements observed at 6-month follow-up are maintained at 24- and 36-month follow-up among clients who received PMHC.

METHOD

Data from the treatment arm of the randomized controlled trial of PMHC were used (n = 459). The main outcomes were (reliable) recovery rate and symptoms of depression (PHQ-9) and anxiety (GAD-7). Primary outcome data at 24- and 36-months follow-up were available for 47% and 39% of participants, respectively. Secondary outcomes were work participation, functional status, health-related quality of life, and positive mental well-being. Sensitivity analyses with regard to missing data assumptions were conducted for the primary continuous outcomes.

RESULTS

Improvements were maintained at 24- and 36-month follow-up for symptoms of depression and anxiety, (reliable) recovery rate, and health-related quality of life. Small linear improvements since 6-month follow-up were observed for work participation, functional status, and positive mental well-being. Sensitivity analyses did not substantially alter the findings for symptoms of depression and anxiety mentioned above.

CONCLUSIONS

Our findings support the long-term effectiveness of PMHC, but results should be interpreted with caution due to lacking follow-up data at 24- and 36-month in the control group, and substantial attrition.

Brain response to emotional faces in anxiety and depression: neural predictors of cognitive behavioral therapy outcome and predictor-based subgroups following therapy

BACKGROUND

Neuroimaging studies have shown variance in brain response to emotional faces predicts cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) outcome. An important next step is to determine if individual differences in neural predictors of CBT response represent distinct patient groups.

METHODS

In total, 90 patients with internalizing disorders completed a face-matching task during functional magnetic resonance imaging before and after 12 weeks of CBT and 45 healthy controls completed the task before and after 12 weeks. Patients exhibiting a pre-to-post CBT >50% reduction in symptom severity on two measures were considered treatment responders. Regions of interest (ROIs) for angry, fearful, and happy faces were submitted to receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis. Significant ROIs were then submitted to decision tree analysis to classify responder/non-responder subgroups. Psychophysiological interactions (PPI) were used to explore functional connectivity in the region(s) that delineated subgroups.

RESULTS

A total of 51 patients were treatment responders and ROC curve results were significant for all face types though specific regions varied. Decision tree results revealed superior occipital response to angry faces identified patient subgroups such that the subgroup with 'high' occipital activity had more responders than the 'low' occipital subgroup. Following CBT, the high, relative to low, occipital subgroup was less symptomatic. Controls exhibited stable superior occipital activation over time. Whole-brain PPI showed reduced baseline superior occipital-postcentral gyrus functional connectivity in responders compared to non-responders.

CONCLUSIONS

Preliminary findings indicate patients characterized by relatively more pre-treatment superior occipital gyrus engagement to angry faces and reduced superior occipital-postcentral gyrus connectivity, relative to non-responders, may represent a phenotype likely to benefit from CBT.

Psychotherapeutische Versorgung in Österreich: Kassenfinanzierte Psychotherapie für Menschen mit chronisch psychischen Erkrankungen im Jahresvergleich 2017 bis 2020

In Österreich wird die psychotherapeutische Versorgung im niedergelassenen Bereich finanziell über die Kostenzuschussregelung und kassenfinanzierten Psychotherapiestunden geregelt. Die vorliegende Studie untersucht, inwiefern sich der Anteil an selbstfinanzierten und kassenfinanzierten Psychotherapieeinheiten über die Jahre 2017–2020 unter Berücksichtigung des sozioökonomischen/krankheitsbezogenen und behandlungsbezogenen Status verändert hat. Hierfür wurde eine Stichprobe von 6387 Patient*innen mit psychischen Störungen im Rahmen einer stationären Behandlung befragt.

Der größte Teil (70 %) der Patient*innen ist seit mehr als zwei Jahren an einer psychischen Störung erkrankt und hatte bereits einen stationären Aufenthalt (46 %) oder ambulante psychotherapeutische Behandlung (82 %) in Anspruch genommen. Im Zuge der ambulanten psychotherapeutischen Vorbehandlung haben 45 % der Patient*innen einen Kassenplatz für Psychotherapie erhalten. Von den Patient*innen, die die Psychotherapie privat finanziert haben, hat der Großteil der Patient*innen (72 %) für eine psychotherapeutische Behandlung bis zu 100 € bezahlt – bei einem Anteil von 70 % von Patient*innen, die vor der stationären Behandlung arbeitsunfähig waren und 39 % von Patient*innen, deren monatliches Einkommen weniger als 1000 € ausmacht. Die Studiendaten zeigen auch, dass sich der Anteil der Patient*innen, die eine kassenfinanzierte Psychotherapie in Anspruch nehmen konnten seit 2017 nicht erhöht hat.

Die vorliegende Studie verdeutlicht, dass die Inanspruchnahme von ambulanter Psychotherapie und Kassenplätzen für Psychotherapie bei Patient*innen mit chronisch psychischen Erkrankungen in den letzten vier Jahren, trotz Erhöhung des Kassenzuschuss im Jahr 2018 und etwaiger Aufstockungen an Kassenplätzen, unverändert geblieben ist. Angesichts der limitierten Kassenplätze ist deshalb ein transparentes System für die Zuteilung von Kassenplätzen zu fordern, um die Inanspruchnahme von ambulanter Psychotherapie bei allen Patient*innen mit chronischen psychischen Erkrankungen zu ermöglichen.

Neural Effects of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy in Psychiatric Disorders: A Systematic Review and Activation Likelihood Estimation Meta-Analysis

Background

Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) is a first-line psychotherapeutic treatment that has been recommended for psychiatric disorders. Prior neuroimaging studies have provided preliminary evidence suggesting that CBT can have an impact on the activity of brain regions and functional integration between regions. However, the results are far from conclusive. The present article aimed to detect characteristic changes in brain activation following CBT across psychiatric disorders.

Method

Web of Science, Cochrane Library, Scopus, and PubMed databases were searched to identify whole-brain functional neuroimaging studies of CBT through 4 August 2021. To be included in the meta-analysis, studies were required to examine functional activation changes between pre-and post-CBT. The included studies were then divided into subgroups according to different task paradigms. Then, an activation likelihood estimation algorithm (ALE) was performed in the different meta-analyses to identify whether brain regions showed consistent effects. Finally, brain regions identified from the meta-analysis were categorized into eight functional networks according to the spatial correlation values between independent components and the template.

Results

In total, 13 studies met inclusion criteria. Three different meta-analyses were performed separately for total tasks, emotion tasks, and cognition tasks. In the total task ALE meta-analysis, the left precuneus was found to have decreased activation. For the cognition task ALE meta-analysis, left anterior cingulate (ACC) and left middle frontal gyrus (MFG) were found to have decreased activation following CBT. However, the emotion task ALE meta-analysis did not find any specific brain regions showing consistent effects. A review of included studies revealed default mode network (DMN), executive control network (ECN), and salience network (SN) were the most relevant among the eight functional networks.

Conclusion

The results revealed that the altered activation in the prefrontal cortex and precuneus were key regions related to the effects of CBT. Therefore, CBT may modulate the neural circuitry of emotion regulation. This finding provides recommendations for the rapidly developing literature.

Inpatient psychotherapy for depression in a large routine clinical care sample: A Bayesian approach to examining clinical outcomes and predictors of change

BACKGROUND

A routinely collected dataset was analyzed (1) to determine the naturalistic effectiveness of inpatient psychotherapy for depression in routine psychotherapeutic care, and (2) to identify potential predictors of change.

METHODS

In a sample of 22,681 inpatients with depression, pre-post and pre-follow-up effect sizes were computed for various outcome variables. To build a probabilistic model of predictors of change, an independent component analysis generated components from demographic and clinical data, and Bayesian EFA extracted factors from the available pre-test, post-test and follow-up questionnaires in a subsample (N = 6377). To select the best-fitted model, the BIC of different path models were compared. A Bayesian path analysis was performed to identify the most important factors to predict changes.

RESULTS

Effect sizes were large for the primary outcome and moderate for various secondary outcomes. Almost all pretreatment factors exerted significant influences on different baseline factors. Several factors were found to be resistant to change during treatment: suicidality, agoraphobia, life dissatisfaction, physical disability and pain. The strongest cross-loadings were observed from suicidality on negative cognitions, from agoraphobia on anxiety, and from physical disability on perceived disability.

LIMITATIONS

No causal conclusions can be drawn directly from our results as we only used cross-lagged panel data without control group.

CONCLUSIONS

The results indicate large effects of inpatient psychotherapy for depression in routine clinical care. The direct influence of pretreatment factors decreased over the course of treatment. However, some factors appeared stable and difficult to treat, which might hinder treatment outcome. Findings of different predictors of change are discussed.

Does psychological process change during psychotherapy predict long-term depression outcome after successful cognitive therapy or interpersonal psychotherapy? Secondary analysis of a randomized trial

OBJECTIVE

Psychotherapies for depression are similarly effective, but the processes through which these therapies work have not been identified. We focus on psychological process changes during therapy as predictors of long-term depression outcome in treatment responders.

METHOD

Secondary analysis of a randomized trial comparing cognitive therapy (CT) and interpersonal psychotherapy (IPT) that focuses on 85 treatment responders. Using mixed-effects models, changes during therapy (0-7 months) on nine process variables were associated with depression severity (BDI-II) at follow-up (7-24 months).

RESULTS

A decrease in dysfunctional attitudes was associated with a decrease in depression scores over time. Improved self-esteem was associated with less depression at follow-up (borderline significant). More improvement in both work and social functioning and interpersonal problems was associated with better depression outcomes in IPT relative to CT, while less improvement in work and social functioning and interpersonal problems was associated with better outcomes in CT relative to IPT.

CONCLUSIONS

Less negative thinking during therapy is associated with lower depression severity in time, while changes during therapy in work and social functioning and interpersonal problems appear to predict different long-term outcomes in CT vs. IPT. If replicated, these findings can be used to guide clinical decision-making during psychotherapy.

Efficacy of metacognitive training for depression as add-on intervention for patients with depression in acute intensive psychiatric inpatient care: A randomized controlled trial

BACKGROUND

Metacognitive training for depression (D-MCT) is a novel low-intensity group training for economic treatment of depression. Previous studies demonstrate its efficacy in moderately depressed outpatients. The present study evaluated efficacy and patients' perspective of the D-MCT in severely depressed psychiatric inpatients.

METHODS

In a randomized-controlled trial, 75 individuals with a major depressive disorder (MDD) were allocated to D-MCT versus euthymic therapy as add-on (twice a week) to cognitive-behavioural-based (CBT) inpatient-care. Depressive symptoms (HDRS, BDI), dysfunctional (meta)cognition (DAS, MCQ-30) and subjective appraisal were assessed at baseline, 4 weeks (post) and 3 months (follow-up).

RESULTS

Participants in both conditions showed a large decline in depression at post and follow-up-assessment. No superior add-effect of D-MCT versus active control emerged for depression severity on top of the inpatient care. However, among patients with a diagnosis of MDD with no (vs. at least one) comorbidity, D-MCT participants showed a larger decline in depressive (meta-)cognition at follow-up with medium-to-large effect sizes. D-MCT was evaluated as superior in overall appraisal, treatment preference, motivation and satisfaction.

LIMITATIONS

The follow-up time interval of 3 months may have been too short to detect long-term effects. There is emerging evidence that modification of (meta)cognition unfolds its full effects only with time. Effects of CBT inpatient-care on outcome parameters cannot be differentiated.

CONCLUSIONS

Although D-MCT as an add-on was not superior in complete case analyses, results suggest greater benefit for patients with MDD and no comorbidity. D-MCT proved feasible in acute-psychiatric inpatient-care and was highly accepted by patients. Future studies should investigate the role of modified (meta)cognition on long-term treatment outcome, including dropout and relapse rates.

Levels of depressed mood and low interest for two years after response to cognitive therapy for recurrent depression

BACKGROUND

Major depressive disorder (MDD) involves depressed mood (high negative affect, predominantly) and low interest/pleasure (low positive affect). In past research, negative affect has improved more than positive affect during acute-phase antidepressant medication or cognitive therapy (CT). We extended this literature by differentiating depressed mood and two dimensions of low interest (general and sexual), assessing persistence of symptom differences after acute-phase CT response, and testing whether continuation treatment acted differently on depressed mood versus low interest.

METHODS

We analyzed data from two randomized controlled trials. Patients with recurrent MDD first received acute-phase CT. Then, responders were randomized to 8-month continuation treatments and assessed for 16-24 additional months.

RESULTS

Depressed mood and low general interest improved more than low sexual interest during acute-phase CT. Among responders, these symptom differences persisted for at least 2 years and were not changed by continuation CT or antidepressant medication.

LIMITATIONS

Generalization of findings to other patient populations and treatments is uncertain. Depressed mood and low interest scales were constructed from standard symptom measures and overlapped empirically.

CONCLUSIONS

Less improvement during CT, and persistent low sexual interest despite continuation treatment, highlights the need for MDD treatments more effectively targeting this positive affective symptom.

Cost-effectiveness of psychological intervention within services for depression delivered by primary care workers in Nepal: economic evaluation of a randomized control trial

BACKGROUND

Integrating services for depression into primary care is key to reducing the treatment gap in low- and middle-income countries. We examined the value of providing the Healthy Activity Programme (HAP), a behavioral activation psychological intervention, within services for depression delivered by primary care workers in Chitwan, Nepal using data from the Programme for Improving Mental Health Care.

METHODS

People diagnosed with depression were randomized to receive either standard treatment (ST), comprised of psychoeducation, antidepressant medication, and home-based follow up, or standard treatment plus psychological intervention (T + P). We estimated incremental costs and health effects of T + P compared to ST, with quality adjusted life years (QALYs) and depression symptom scores over 12 months as health effects. Nonparametric uncertainty analysis provided confidence intervals around each incremental effectiveness ratio (ICER); results are presented in 2020 international dollars.

RESULTS

Sixty participants received ST and 60 received T + P. Implementation costs (ST = $329, T + P = $617) were substantially higher than service delivery costs (ST = $18.7, T + P = $22.4) per participant. ST and T + P participants accrued 46.5 and 49.4 QALYs, respectively. The ICERs for T + P relative to ST were $4422 per QALY gained (95% confidence interval: $2484 to $9550) - slightly above the highly cost-effective threshold - and -$53.21 (95% confidence interval: -$105.8 to -$30.2) per unit change on the Patient Health Questionnaire.

CONCLUSION

Providing HAP within integrated depression services in Chitwan was cost-effective, if not highly cost-effective. Efforts to scale up integrated services in Nepal and similar contexts should consider including evidence-based psychological interventions as a part of cost-effective mental healthcare for depression.

Mental Health in Australia: Psychological Distress Reported in Six Consecutive Cross-Sectional National Surveys From 2001 to 2018

PURPOSE

To examine Australian psychological distress trends from 2001 to 2017/18, including analysis by age, sex, location, and household income.

METHODS

Secondary analysis of the working age population (18-64 years) in six successive representative national health surveys. Measures were prevalence of psychological distress at very-high symptom level (defined by a Kessler Psychological Distress Scale (K10) score of 30 or more) and combined high/very-high level (K10 score of 22 or more). Very-high K10 scores are associated with mental health problems meeting diagnostic thresholds in past year.

RESULTS

From 2001 to 2017/18 Australian rates of K10 very-high distress rose significantly from 3.8 to 5.1% and combined high/very-high from 13.2 to 14.8%. In women aged 55-64, very-high distress rose significantly and substantially from 3.5 to 7.2% and high/very-high distress from 12.4 to 18.7%. In men aged 25-34, very-high distress increased from 2.1 to 4.0% and high/very-high from 10.6 to 11.5%. Income was strongly and inversely associated with distress (lowest vs. highest quintile adjusted OR 11.4). An apparent association of increased distress with regional location disappeared with adjustment for income.

CONCLUSION

Australia's population level of psychological distress increased significantly from 2001-2017/18, with levels highest in women and with rates inversely associated with income. This is likely to be indicative of increased community rates of mental disorders. Given that this has occurred whilst mental healthcare expenditure has increased, there is an urgent need to reconsider how best to respond to mental illness, including targeting the most vulnerable based on social determinants such as age, gender, and lower incomes.

More treatment but no less depression: The treatment-prevalence paradox

Treatments for depression have improved, and their availability has markedly increased since the 1980s. Mysteriously the general population prevalence of depression has not decreased. This "treatment-prevalence paradox" (TPP) raises fundamental questions about the diagnosis and treatment of depression. We propose and evaluate seven explanations for the TPP. First, two explanations assume that improved and more widely available treatments have reduced prevalence, but that the reduction has been offset by an increase in: 1) misdiagnosing distress as depression, yielding more "false positive" diagnoses; or 2) an actual increase in depression incidence. Second, the remaining five explanations assume prevalence has not decreased, but suggest that: 3) treatments are less efficacious and 4) less enduring than the literature suggests; 5) trial efficacy doesn't generalize to real-world settings; 6) population-level treatment impact differs for chronic-recurrent versus non-recurrent cases; and 7) treatments have some iatrogenic consequences. Any of these seven explanations could undermine treatment impact on prevalence, thereby helping to explain the TPP. Our analysis reveals that there is little evidence that incidence or prevalence have increased as a result of error or fact (Explanations 1 and 2), and strong evidence that (a) the published literature overestimates short- and long-term treatment efficacy, (b) treatments are considerably less effective as deployed in "real world" settings, and (c) treatment impact differs substantially for chronic-recurrent cases relative to non-recurrent cases. Collectively, these a-c explanations likely account for most of the TPP. Lastly, little research exists on iatrogenic effects of current treatments (Explanation 7), but further exploration is critical.

A Patient Stratification Approach to Identifying the Likelihood of Continued Chronic Depression and Relapse Following Treatment for Depression

Background: Subgrouping methods have the potential to support treatment decision making for patients with depression. Such approaches have not been used to study the continued course of depression or likelihood of relapse following treatment. Method: Data from individual participants of seven randomised controlled trials were analysed. Latent profile analysis was used to identify subgroups based on baseline characteristics. Associations between profiles and odds of both continued chronic depression and relapse up to one year post-treatment were explored. Differences in outcomes were investigated within profiles for those treated with antidepressants, psychological therapy, and usual care. Results: Seven profiles were identified; profiles with higher symptom severity and long durations of both anxiety and depression at baseline were at higher risk of relapse and of chronic depression. Members of profile five (likely long durations of depression and anxiety, moderately-severe symptoms, and past antidepressant use) appeared to have better outcomes with psychological therapies: antidepressants vs. psychological therapies (OR (95% CI) for relapse = 2.92 (1.24–6.87), chronic course = 2.27 (1.27–4.06)) and usual care vs. psychological therapies (relapse = 2.51 (1.16–5.40), chronic course = 1.98 (1.16–3.37)). Conclusions: Profiles at greater risk of poor outcomes could benefit from more intensive treatment and frequent monitoring. Patients in profile five may benefit more from psychological therapies than other treatments.

Initial treatment choices to achieve sustained response in major depression: a systematic review and network meta-analysis

Major depression is often a relapsing disorder. It is therefore important to start its treatment with therapies that maximize the chance of not only getting the patients well but also keeping them well. We examined the associations between initial treatments and sustained response by conducting a network meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials (RCTs) in which adult patients with major depression were randomized to acute treatment with a psychotherapy (PSY), a protocolized antidepressant pharmacotherapy (PHA), their combination (COM), standard treatment in primary or secondary care (STD), or pill placebo, and were then followed up through a maintenance phase. By design, acute phase treatment could be continued into the maintenance phase, switched to another treatment or followed by discretionary treatment. We included 81 RCTs, with 13,722 participants. Sustained response was defined as responding to the acute treatment and subsequently having no depressive relapse through the maintenance phase (mean duration: 42.2±16.2 weeks, range 24-104 weeks). We extracted the data reported at the time point closest to 12 months. COM resulted in more sustained response than PHA, both when these treatments were continued into the maintenance phase (OR=2.52, 95% CI: 1.66-3.85) and when they were followed by discretionary treatment (OR=1.80, 95% CI: 1.21-2.67). The same applied to COM in comparison with STD (OR=2.90, 95% CI: 1.68-5.01 when COM was continued into the maintenance phase; OR=1.97, 95% CI: 1.51-2.58 when COM was followed by discretionary treatment). PSY also kept the patients well more often than PHA, both when these treatments were continued into the maintenance phase (OR=1.53, 95% CI: 1.00-2.35) and when they were followed by discretionary treatment (OR=1.66, 95% CI: 1.13-2.44). The same applied to PSY compared with STD (OR=1.76, 95% CI: 0.97-3.21 when PSY was continued into the maintenance phase; OR=1.83, 95% CI: 1.20-2.78 when PSY was followed by discretionary treatment). Given the average sustained response rate of 29% on STD, the advantages of PSY or COM over PHA or STD translated into risk differences ranging from 12 to 16 percentage points. We conclude that PSY and COM have more enduring effects than PHA. Clinical guidelines on the initial treatment choice for depression may need to be updated accordingly.

Is perceived control of depression related to therapy outcome for depression? A longitudinal study

BACKGROUND

The present study followed a group of patients over a two-year period after they had received a cognitive behavioral psychoeducational intervention targeting patients' ability to cope with depression. The main aims were to examine whether a change in both depressive symptoms and in the perceived control of depression occurred and the relationship between depressive symptoms and perceived control.

METHODS

Using a prospective longitudinal design, a sample of 183 patients was assessed at four time points during a two-year period.

RESULTS

The patients showed a large reduction in depressive symptoms over the two-year period after the course ended. During the same time period, perceived controllability of depression increased. A parallel latent growth curve model showed that increased control beliefs were related to reduced depressive symptoms. The decrease in depressive symptoms over time was not dependent on the patients' initial level of depression or initial control of depression, use of medication, duration of previous depressive episodes, alcohol use or sociodemographic variables.

CONCLUSION

Group interventions aimed at increasing coping skills for preventing and mastering of depression may lead to a large and stable reduction in depressive symptoms. A key factor in prevention may be to strengthen patients' perceived ability to cope with the different symptoms of depression.

Delivering an Online Cognitive Behavioral Therapy Program to Address Mental Health Challenges Faced by Correctional Workers and Other Public Safety Personnel: Protocol for a Mixed Methods Study

BACKGROUND

Public safety personnel have regular and often intense exposure to potentially traumatic events at work, especially workplace violence in the case of correctional workers. Subsequently, correctional workers are at higher risk of developing mental health problems such as posttraumatic stress disorder. Public safety personnel are up to 4 times more likely to experience suicidal ideation, suicidal attempts, and death by suicide compared to the general population. Despite this high prevalence, help-seeking behaviors from public safety personnel are low due to stigma and irregular work hours limiting access to care. Innovative treatments are needed to address these challenges.

OBJECTIVE

This study will investigate the efficacy of an electronically delivered cognitive behavioral therapy (e-CBT) program tailored to correctional workers' mental health problems.

METHODS

This study is composed of 4 phases. In phase 1, we will interview correctional workers individually and in focus groups to identify personal, social, and cultural factors affecting their mental health and barriers to care. Phase 2 will use the information gathered from the interviews to develop gender- and diagnosis-specific e-CBT modules. These will be presented to a new group of participants who will provide further feedback on their usability and accessibility. In phase 3, we will randomly assign participants to either an e-CBT or treatment as usual arm. The program will be evaluated with validated symptomatology questionnaires and interviews. Phase 4 will use this additional information to fine-tune the e-CBT modules for a larger-scale randomized controlled trial design comparing the e-CBT program to in-person CBT. All e-CBT modules will be delivered through a secure online platform.

RESULTS

The study received ethics approval in December 2020, and participant recruitment began in March 2021. Participant recruitment has been conducted through targeted advertisements and physician referrals. To date, there have been 15 participants recruited for Phase 1, and it is expected to conclude in July 2021, with phase 2 beginning in September 2021. Complete data collection and analysis from all phases are expected to conclude by July 2023. Linear and binomial regression (for continuous and categorical outcomes, respectively) will be conducted along with interpretive qualitative methods.

CONCLUSIONS

If proven efficacious and feasible, this e-CBT program can provide a high-quality and clinically validated resource to address the mental health problems of correctional workers. Additionally, findings can contribute to the development of innovative treatments for other public safety professions.

TRIAL REGISTRATION

ClinicalTrials.gov NCT04666974; https://www.clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT04666974.

INTERNATIONAL REGISTERED REPORT IDENTIFIER (IRRID)

DERR1-10.2196/30845.

Cognitive Behavior Therapy for Depression From an Evolutionary Perspective

Evolutionary medicine attempts to solve a problem with which traditional medicine has struggled historically; how do we distinguish between diseased states and "healthy" responses to disease states? Fever and diarrhea represent classic examples of evolved adaptations that increase the likelihood of survival in response to the presence of pathogens in the body. Whereas, the severe mental disorders like psychotic mania or the schizophrenias may involve true "disease" states best treated pharmacologically, most non-psychotic "disorders" that revolve around negative affects like depression or anxiety are likely adaptations that evolved to serve a function that increased inclusive fitness in our ancestral past. What this likely means is that the proximal mechanisms underlying the non-psychotic "disorders" are "species typical" and neither diseases nor disorders. Rather, they are coordinated "whole body" responses that prepare the individual to respond in a maximally functional fashion to the variety of different challenges that our ancestors faced. A case can be made that depression evolved to facilitate a deliberate cognitive style (rumination) in response to complex (often social) problems. What this further suggests is that those interventions that best facilitate the functions that those adaptations evolved to serve (such as rumination) are likely to be preferred over those like medications that simply anesthetize the distress. We consider the mechanisms that evolved to generate depression and the processes utilized in cognitive behavior therapy to facilitate those functions from an adaptationist evolutionary perspective.

The Development and Validation of the Memory Support Treatment Provider Checklist

Patient memory for the contents of treatment is staggeringly poor, and poor memory for treatment is associated with worse treatment outcome. Accordingly, the Memory Support Intervention was developed to improve patient memory for treatment as an adjunct to treatment as usual. As plans to disseminate the Memory Support Intervention are developed, it is important to have efficient, accurate methods of measuring fidelity to the intervention. However, the existing method of assessing fidelity to the Memory Support Intervention, the Memory Support Rating Scale (MSRS), is burdensome and requires trained independent-raters to spend multiple hours reviewing session recordings, which is not feasible in many routine mental health care settings. Hence, a provider-rated measure of fidelity to the MSI has been developed. The goal of this study is to examine the reliability and validity of scores on this measure-the Memory Support Treatment Provider Checklist. A sample of Memory Support Treatment Provider Checklists (N = 319) were completed by providers (N = 8) treating adults with depression (N = 84). Three metrics of the Memory Support Treatment Provider Checklist were evaluated: (a) the internal consistency and structural validity using confirmatory factor analysis based on prior research on the MSRS and the Memory Support Intervention, (b) construct validity, and (c) predictive validity. Results indicate that the Memory Support Treatment Provider Checklist yields reliable and valid scores of fidelity to the Memory Support Intervention. Overall, this checklist offers a viable, brief method of evaluating fidelity to the Memory Support Intervention.

Validation of the Multidimensional Assessment of Interoceptive Awareness (MAIA-2) questionnaire in hospitalized patients with major depressive disorder

OBJECTIVES

Interoception refers to the sensation, interpretation, and integration of internal somatic signals. Abnormalities in self-reported interoception are prevalent features of major depressive disorder (MDD) and may affect treatment outcomes. In the present study, we investigated the psychometric properties of the revised eight-dimensional and 37-item Multidimensional Assessment of Interoceptive Awareness questionnaire (the MAIA-2) in a severely depressed sample, after translating two updated scales (Not-Distracting, Not-Worrying) into German. Specifically, we examined the measure's internal consistency reliability, sensitivity to change, and minimal important differences (MID) with a focus on patient's antidepressive responses to treatment.

METHODS

The study enrolled 110 participants (age: M = 46.85, SD = 11.23; female: 55.45%) undergoing hospital treatment, of whom 87 were included in the pre-post analysis. Participants completed a German translation of MAIA-2 and the Beck Depression Inventory-II (pre-/post-treatment). Internal consistency reliability was determined by Cronbach's α/McDonalds's ω, sensitivity to change was determined by effect sizes, and MIDs were determined by distribution- (0.5*SD) and anchor-based approaches (mean change method; ROC curve cut-points).

RESULTS

Depression severity reduced over the course of treatment (Median = -65.22%), and 34.48% of patients achieved remission. Reliability was appropriate for post-treatment (range of ω: .70-.90), but questionable for two pre-treatment scales (Noticing: ω = .64; Not-Distracting: ω = .66). The eight dimensions of MAIA-2 were sensitive to change (standardized response mean: .32-.81; Cohen's effect size: .30-.92). Distribution-based MIDs (.38-.61) and anchor-based mean change MIDs (remission vs. partial response: .00-.85; partial response vs. nonresponse: .08-.88) were established on the group level. For six scales, ROC cut-points (remission: .00-1.33; response: -.20-1.00) demonstrated accurate classification to treatment response groups on the individual level.

CONCLUSIONS

This study demonstrated the applicability of the MAIA-2 questionnaire in MDD. The updated version may have led to reliability improvements regarding the revised scales, but subthreshold reliability was evident prior to treatment. The measure's dimensions were sensitive to change. MIDs were established that corresponded with antidepressive treatment outcomes. Our findings are consistent with a growing area of research which considers somatic feelings as key contributors to mental health.

The efficacy of cognitive behavioural therapy on stress, anxiety and depression of infertile couples: a systematic review and meta-analysis

Infertility is considered globally to be a stressful and hard experience that affects the couples psychologically, socially and individually. The aim of this study was to systematically review the effectiveness of cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) on depression, stress and anxiety in infertile couples. In this systematic review and meta-analysis, databases were searched up to August 2019. Twelve articles were included in the meta-analysis and analysed with Comprehensive Meta-Analysis (CMA) v2. The results of pooled studies showed that the mean scores for depression and anxiety decreased in patients receiving CBT as compared to the control group. The results of three pooled studies showed no significant difference on stress in patients receiving CBT as compared to the control group. The findings of this study provides valuable suggestions for improving mental health status through applying CBT to manage anxiety and depression in infertile couples.

Role of age, gender and marital status in prognosis for adults with depression: An individual patient data meta-analysis

AIMS

To determine whether age, gender and marital status are associated with prognosis for adults with depression who sought treatment in primary care.

METHODS

Medline, Embase, PsycINFO and Cochrane Central were searched from inception to 1st December 2020 for randomised controlled trials (RCTs) of adults seeking treatment for depression from their general practitioners, that used the Revised Clinical Interview Schedule so that there was uniformity in the measurement of clinical prognostic factors, and that reported on age, gender and marital status. Individual participant data were gathered from all nine eligible RCTs (N = 4864). Two-stage random-effects meta-analyses were conducted to ascertain the independent association between: (i) age, (ii) gender and (iii) marital status, and depressive symptoms at 3-4, 6-8, and 9-12 months post-baseline and remission at 3-4 months. Risk of bias was evaluated using QUIPS and quality was assessed using GRADE. PROSPERO registration: CRD42019129512. Pre-registered protocol https://osf.io/e5zup/.

RESULTS

There was no evidence of an association between age and prognosis before or after adjusting for depressive 'disorder characteristics' that are associated with prognosis (symptom severity, durations of depression and anxiety, comorbid panic disorderand a history of antidepressant treatment). Difference in mean depressive symptom score at 3-4 months post-baseline per-5-year increase in age = 0(95% CI: -0.02 to 0.02). There was no evidence for a difference in prognoses for men and women at 3-4 months or 9-12 months post-baseline, but men had worse prognoses at 6-8 months (percentage difference in depressive symptoms for men compared to women: 15.08% (95% CI: 4.82 to 26.35)). However, this was largely driven by a single study that contributed data at 6-8 months and not the other time points. Further, there was little evidence for an association after adjusting for depressive 'disorder characteristics' and employment status (12.23% (-1.69 to 28.12)). Participants that were either single (percentage difference in depressive symptoms for single participants: 9.25% (95% CI: 2.78 to 16.13) or no longer married (8.02% (95% CI: 1.31 to 15.18)) had worse prognoses than those that were married, even after adjusting for depressive 'disorder characteristics' and all available confounders.

CONCLUSION

Clinicians and researchers will continue to routinely record age and gender, but despite their importance for incidence and prevalence of depression, they appear to offer little information regarding prognosis. Patients that are single or no longer married may be expected to have slightly worse prognoses than those that are married. Ensuring this is recorded routinely alongside depressive 'disorder characteristics' in clinic may be important.

Presentation of benefits and harms of antidepressants on websites: A cross-sectional study

BACKGROUND:

Many people use the Internet for obtaining information about their medications.

OBJECTIVE:

To investigate whether information about antidepressants on popular websites reflects the scientific evidence and enables people to make informed choices.

METHODS:

Cross-sectional study using a checklist with 14 predefined criteria of 39 websites from 10 countries.

RESULTS:

All 39 websites mentioned the benefits of antidepressants. Twenty-nine (74%) websites attributed depression to a “chemical imbalance” or claimed they could fix an imbalance. Sexual dysfunction was mentioned as a harmful effect on 23 (59%) websites while five (13%) mentioned emotional numbing. Twenty-five (64%) stated that antidepressants may cause increased suicidal ideation, but 23 (92%) of them contained incorrect information, and only two (5%) websites noted that the suicide risk is increased in people of all ages. Twenty-eight websites (72%) warned patients about withdrawal effects but only one stated that antidepressants can be addictive.

CONCLUSIONS:

None of the websites met our predefined criteria. The information was generally inaccurate and unhelpful and has potential to lead to inappropriate use and overuse of antidepressants and reduce the likelihood that people will seek better options for depression like psychotherapy.

Psychologic Treatment of Depression Compared With Pharmacotherapy and Combined Treatment in Primary Care: A Network Meta-Analysis

PURPOSE

Most patients with depression are treated by general practitioners, and most of those patients prefer psychotherapy over pharmacotherapy. No network meta-analyses have examined the effects of psychotherapy compared with pharmacotherapy, combined treatment, care as usual, and other control conditions among patients in primary care.

METHODS

We conducted systematic searches of bibliographic databases to identify randomized trials comparing psychotherapy with pharmacotherapy, combined treatment, care as usual, waitlist, and pill placebo. The main outcome was treatment response (50% improvement of depressive symptoms from baseline to end point).

RESULTS

A total of 58 studies with 9,301 patients were included. Both psychotherapy and pharmacotherapy were significantly more effective than care as usual (relative risk [RR] for response = 1.60; 95% CI, 1.40-1.83 and RR = 1.65; 95% CI, 1.35-2.03, respectively) and waitlist (RR = 2.35; 95% CI, 1.57-3.51 and RR = 2.43; 95% CI, 1.57-3.74, respectively) control groups. We found no significant differences between psychotherapy and pharmacotherapy (RR = 1.03; 95% CI, 0.88-1.22). The effects were significantly greater for combined treatment compared with psychotherapy alone (RR = 1.35; 95% CI, 1.00-1.81). The difference between combined treatment and pharmacotherapy became significant when limited to studies with low risk of bias and studies limited to cognitive behavior therapy.

CONCLUSIONS

Psychotherapy is likely effective for the treatment of depression when compared with care as usual or waitlist, with effects comparable to those of pharmacotherapy. Combined treatment might be better than either psychotherapy or pharmacotherapy alone.

Individuals with depression express more distorted thinking on social media

Depression is a leading cause of disability worldwide, but is often underdiagnosed and undertreated. Cognitive behavioural therapy holds that individuals with depression exhibit distorted modes of thinking, that is, cognitive distortions, that can negatively affect their emotions and motivation. Here, we show that the language of individuals with a self-reported diagnosis of depression on social media is characterized by higher levels of distorted thinking compared with a random sample. This effect is specific to the distorted nature of the expression and cannot be explained by the presence of specific topics, sentiment or first-person pronouns. This study identifies online language patterns that are indicative of depression-related distorted thinking. We caution that any future applications of this research should carefully consider ethical and data privacy issues.

Evolutionary theory and the treatment of depression: It is all about the squids and the sea bass

According to the analytical rumination hypothesis, depression is an evolved adaptation (like pain or anxiety) that served in our ancestral past to keep people focused on complex interpersonal problems until they could arrive at a resolution (spontaneous remission). If this is true, then those clinical treatments that most facilitate the functions that depression evolved to serve are likely to be more advantageous in the long run than others that simply relieve distress. For example, antidepressant medications may be efficacious in the treatment of depression but only work for so long as they are taken. They may also have an iatrogenic effect that prolongs the duration of the underlying episode. Cognitive and behavioral interventions are as efficacious as medications in terms of reducing acute distress and also appear to have an enduring effect that protects against the return of subsequent symptoms. However, the bulk of the evidence for this effect comes from comparisons to prior medication treatment and it remains unclear whether these psychosocial interventions are truly preventative, or antidepressant medications iatrogenic. A study is described that could resolve this issue and test evolutionary theory with respect to the purported role of rumination in bringing about spontaneous remission.

Combined Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy and Placebo Treatment for Patients with Depression: A Follow-Up Assessment

Introduction

A previous study revealed that patients with depression who received a combination of cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) and placebo treatment (CBT+placebo) showed greater symptom reduction than a CBT group without a placebo. Moreover, the CBT+placebo group practiced relaxation training more frequently. We conducted a 3-month follow-up assessment to investigate the temporal stability of the placebo effects.

Methods

Eighty-two outpatients with a diagnosis of major depressive disorder who had participated in a 4-week CBT course (CBT: n = 40; CBT with daily placebo treatment: n = 42) returned to a 3-month follow-up assessment. The participants of the CBT+placebo group had been debriefed directly after the course.

Results

Compared to the CBT group, the CBT+placebo group had lower scores on the Beck Depression Inventory-II (BDI-II) at follow-up and more participants were below the clinical cut-off score of the BDI-II. Additionally, the CBT+placebo group continued to practice relaxation more frequently.

Discussion

This study demonstrates that placebo effects are not short-lived and continue to be present after the debriefing.

The effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of integrating mental health services in primary care in low- and middle-income countries: systematic review

AIMS AND METHOD

This systematic review examines the effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of behavioural health integration into primary healthcare in the management of depression and unhealthy alcohol use in low- and middle-income countries. Following PRISMA guidelines, this review included research that studied patients aged ≥18 years with unhealthy alcohol use and/or depression of any clinical severity. An exploration of the models of integration was used to characterise a typology of behavioural health integration specific for low- and middle-income countries.

RESULTS

Fifty-eight articles met inclusion criteria. Studies evidenced increased effectiveness of integrated care over treatment as usual for both conditions. The economic evaluations found increased direct health costs but cost-effective estimates. The included studies used six distinct behavioural health integration models.

CLINICAL IMPLICATIONS

Behavioural health integration may yield improved health outcomes, although it may require additional resources. The proposed typology can assist decision-makers to advance the implementation of integrated models.

Shaping therapeutic trajectories in mental health: Instructive vs. permissive causality

We are currently facing the challenge of improving treatments for psychiatric disorders such as major depression. Notably, antidepressants have an incomplete efficacy, mostly due to our limited knowledge of their action. Here we present a theoretical framework that considers the distinction between instructive and permissive causality, which allows formalizing and disentangling the effects exerted by different therapeutic strategies commonly used in psychiatry. Instructive causality implies that an action determines a specific effect while permissive causality allows an action to take effect or not. We posit that therapeutic strategies able to improve the quality of the living environment or the ability to face it, including changes in lifestyle and psychotherapeutic interventions, rely mainly on instructive causality and thus shape the individual's ability to face the psychopathology and build resilience. By contrast, pharmacological treatments, such as selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors, act primarily through a permissive causality: they boost neural plasticity, i.e. the ability of the brain to change itself, and therefore allow for instructive interventions to produce beneficial effects or not. The combination of an instructive and a permissive action represents the most promising approach since the quality of the living environment can shape the path leading to mental health while drug treatment can increase the likelihood of achieving such a goal.

Cognitive-behavioural therapy for a variety of conditions: an overview of systematic reviews and panoramic meta-analysis

BACKGROUND

Cognitive-behavioural therapy aims to increase quality of life by changing cognitive and behavioural factors that maintain problematic symptoms. A previous overview of cognitive-behavioural therapy systematic reviews suggested that cognitive-behavioural therapy was effective for many conditions. However, few of the included reviews synthesised randomised controlled trials.

OBJECTIVES

This project was undertaken to map the quality and gaps in the cognitive-behavioural therapy systematic review of randomised controlled trial evidence base. Panoramic meta-analyses were also conducted to identify any across-condition general effects of cognitive-behavioural therapy.

DATA SOURCES

The overview was designed with cognitive-behavioural therapy patients, clinicians and researchers. The Cochrane Library, MEDLINE, EMBASE, PsycINFO, Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature, Child Development & Adolescent Studies, Database of Abstracts of Reviews of Effects and OpenGrey databases were searched from 1992 to January 2019.

REVIEW METHODS

Study inclusion criteria were as follows: (1) fulfil the Centre for Reviews and Dissemination criteria; (2) intervention reported as cognitive-behavioural therapy or including one cognitive and one behavioural element; (3) include a synthesis of cognitive-behavioural therapy trials; (4) include either health-related quality of life, depression, anxiety or pain outcome; and (5) available in English. Review quality was assessed with A MeaSurement Tool to Assess systematic Reviews (AMSTAR)-2. Reviews were quality assessed and data were extracted in duplicate by two independent researchers, and then mapped according to condition, population, context and quality. The effects from high-quality reviews were pooled within condition groups, using a random-effect panoramic meta-analysis. If the across-condition heterogeneity was I2 < 75%, we pooled across conditions. Subgroup analyses were conducted for age, delivery format, comparator type and length of follow-up, and a sensitivity analysis was performed for quality.

RESULTS

A total of 494 reviews were mapped, representing 68% (27/40) of the categories of the International Classification of Diseases, Eleventh Revision, Mortality and Morbidity Statistics. Most reviews (71%, 351/494) were of lower quality. Research on older adults, using cognitive-behavioural therapy preventatively, ethnic minorities and people living outside Europe, North America or Australasia was limited. Out of 494 reviews, 71 were included in the primary panoramic meta-analyses. A modest effect was found in favour of cognitive-behavioural therapy for health-related quality of life (standardised mean difference 0.23, 95% confidence interval 0.05 to 0.41, prediction interval -0.05 to 0.50, I2 = 32%), anxiety (standardised mean difference 0.30, 95% confidence interval 0.18 to 0.43, prediction interval -0.28 to 0.88, I2 = 62%) and pain (standardised mean difference 0.23, 95% confidence interval 0.05 to 0.41, prediction interval -0.28 to 0.74, I2 = 64%) outcomes. All condition, subgroup and sensitivity effect estimates remained consistent with the general effect. A statistically significant interaction effect was evident between the active and non-active comparator groups for the health-related quality-of-life outcome. A general effect for depression outcomes was not produced as a result of considerable heterogeneity across reviews and conditions.

LIMITATIONS

Data extraction and analysis were conducted at the review level, rather than returning to the individual trial data. This meant that the risk of bias of the individual trials could not be accounted for, but only the quality of the systematic reviews that synthesised them.

CONCLUSION

Owing to the consistency and homogeneity of the highest-quality evidence, it is proposed that cognitive-behavioural therapy can produce a modest general, across-condition benefit in health-related quality-of-life, anxiety and pain outcomes.

FUTURE WORK

Future research should focus on how the modest effect sizes seen with cognitive-behavioural therapy can be increased, for example identifying alternative delivery formats to increase adherence and reduce dropout, and pursuing novel methods to assess intervention fidelity and quality.

STUDY REGISTRATION

This study is registered as PROSPERO CRD42017078690.

FUNDING

This project was funded by the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) Health Technology Assessment programme and will be published in full in Health Technology Assessment; Vol. 25, No. 9. See the NIHR Journals Library website for further project information.

Mechanisms of change and heterogeneous treatment effects in psychodynamic and cognitive behavioural therapy for patients with depressive disorder: a randomized controlled trial

BACKGROUND

Major depressive disorder (MDD) is a prevalent psychiatric condition associated with significant disability, mortality and economic burden. Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) and psychodynamic psychotherapy (PDT) are found to be equally effective for patients with depression. However, many patients do not respond sufficiently to either treatment. To offer individualized treatment, we need to know if some patients benefit more from one of the two therapies. At present little is known about what patient characteristics (moderators) may be associated with differential outcomes of CBT and PDT, and through what therapeutic processes and mechanisms (mediators) improvements occur in each therapy mode. Presently only theoretical assumptions, sparsely supported by research findings, describe what potentially moderates and mediates the treatment effects of CBT and PDT. The overall aim of this study is to examine theoretically derived putative moderators and mediators in CBT and PDT and strengthen the evidence base about for whom and how these treatments works in a representative sample of patients with MDD.

METHODS

One hundred patients with a diagnosis of MDD will be randomized to either CBT or PDT. Patients will be treated over 28 weeks with either CBT (one weekly session over 16 weeks and three monthly booster sessions) or PDT (one weekly session over 28 weeks). The patients will be evaluated at baseline, during the course of therapy, at the end of therapy, and at follow-up investigations 1 and 3 years post treatment. A large range of patient and observer rated questionnaires (specific preselected putative moderators and mediators) are included.

DISCUSSION

The clinical outcome of this study may better guide clinicians when deciding what kind of treatment any individual patient should be offered. Moreover, the study aims to further our knowledge of what mechanisms lead to symptom improvement and increased psychosocial functioning.

TRIAL REGISTRATION

ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT03022071.

Economic evaluations of psychological treatments for common mental disorders in low- and middle-income countries: protocol for a systematic review

BACKGROUND

Common mental disorders (CMDs) are highly prevalent conditions that constitute a major public health and economic burden on society in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). Despite the increased demand for economic evidence to support resource allocation for scaled-up implementation of mental health services in these contexts, economic evaluations of psychological treatments for CMDs remain scarce.

OBJECTIVE

The proposed systematic review aims to synthesize findings on methods and outcomes of economic evaluations of psychological treatments for CMDs in LMICs and appraise quality.

METHODS

We will identify, select, and extract data from published economic evaluations of psychological interventions for CMDs conducted in LMICs. We will search bibliographic databases (PubMed, EMBASE, CINAHL, Web of Science, EconLit, PsycINFO, Africa-Wide Information, Cochrane library, Centre for Reviews and Dissemination (CRD), Cost Effectiveness Analysis (CEA) Registry), and the African Journals Online (AJOL) and Google Scholar platforms. Only full economic evaluations (Cost-Effectiveness Analysis (CEA), Cost-Utility Analysis (CUA), Cost-Consequence Analysis (CCA), or Cost-Benefit Analysis (CBA)) of psychological treatments for CMDs (defined as depressive, anxiety, and substance use disorders) conducted in LMICs will be included. There will be no restrictions based on date of publication, perspective, follow-up duration or sample size. Data extraction will be guided by the Consolidated Health Economic Evaluation Reporting Standards (CHEERS) checklist.

RESULTS

The results presented will be examined using a narrative synthesis approach. The quality of included studies will be assessed using the Drummond & Jefferson checklist.

CONCLUSION

The fledgling evidence base in this area provides an opportunity to promote improved economic evaluation methods in line with repeated calls for economic evidence alongside effectiveness evidence in these settings. A rigorously developed economic evaluation evidence base will support resource allocation decisions for scaled up implementation of psychological interventions in LMIC settings.

SYSTEMATIC REVIEW REGISTRATION

PROSPERO CRD42020185277.

Mindfulness-based cognitive therapy for prevention and time to depressive relapse: Systematic review and network meta-analysis

OBJECTIVE

To perform a network meta-analysis (NMA) to compare the long-term effectiveness of mindfulness-based cognitive therapy (MBCT) with available strategies for prevention and time to depressive relapse.

METHODS

Seven electronic databases were searched up to June 2019. Studies evaluated MBCT for the management of depression-related outcomes and follow-up assessments occurred at 12 months or longer.

RESULTS

Twenty-three publications were included, 17 of which were randomised controlled trials (RCTs). Data from 14 RCTs including 2077 participants contributed to meta-analysis (MA) and NMA to assess relapse of depression and 13 RCTs with 2017 participants contributed to MA and NMA for time to relapse of depression. NMAs showed statistically significant advantages for MBCT over treatment as usual (TAU) for relapse of depression (RR = 0.73, 95% CI 0.54 to 0.98) and for MBCT over TAU and placebo for time to relapse of depression (MBCT vs TAU: HR = 0.57, 95% CI 0.37 to 0.88; MBCT vs placebo: HR = 0.23, 95% CI 0.08 to 0.67). Subgroup meta-analysis of relapse of depression by previous number of depressive episodes showed similar results between subgroups. Subgroup meta-analysis by the use or not of booster sessions suggests these may lead to improved effectiveness.

CONCLUSIONS

MBCT is more effective than TAU in the long-term in preventing relapse of depression and has statistically significant advantages over TAU and placebo for time to relapse of depression. No statistically significant differences were observed between MBCT and active treatment strategies for rate of relapse or time to relapse of depression.

Efficacy of Triple Chronotherapy in unipolar and bipolar depression: A systematic review of the available evidence

BACKGROUND

Given the strong relationship between circadian rhythm disruption and mood regulation, combined chronotherapeutic approaches have been proposed for mood disorders. However, a comprehensive review of the available evidence on the efficacy of such interventions for depression is lacking.

AIM

To systematically review available literature on Triple Chronotherapy (Sleep Deprivation - Sleep Phase Advance - Bright Light Therapy) for depressive symptoms in Major Depression and Bipolar Depression.

METHODS

We followed the PRISMA statement for systematic reviews to conduct a web-based search on PubMed, Scopus and Embase using a list of selected keywords relevant to depression and chronotherapy.

RESULTS

After title and abstract screening of the 321 records retrieved, 25 potentially eligible studies were assessed at full-text screening. Nineteen studies were excluded for failure to match inclusion criteria. Six records of Triple Chronotherapy in addition to conventional treatment, published between 2009 and 2019, were included in the revision. All studies reported significant improvements on HAM-D scores at the end of treatment, with 50% to 84% response rates. Efficacy of treatment was confirmed on follow-up by three studies, with 58% to 61% response rates. Remission rates varied from 33,3% to 77%. Reported side effects were negligible across studies.

LIMITATIONS

Available trials are very few and only one included a control group treated with a daily exercise program.

CONCLUSIONS

The limited literature suggests that Triple chronotherapy might be a safe and effective addition to conventional antidepressant interventions, although well-designed, randomized controlled trials are needed.