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Published on: August 11, 2015
The effectiveness of psychological treatments for treatment-resistant depression: a systematic review
S McPherson1, P Cairns, J Carlyle
1Psychotherapy Evaluation Research Unit, Tavistock Centre, London, UK. susan@mcpherson.org.uk
Objective:
A systematic review of all studies (controlled and uncontrolled) to evaluate psychological interventions with treatment-resistant depression.
Method:
A systematic search to identify studies evaluating a psychological intervention with adults with a diagnosis of major depressive disorder who had not responded to at least one course of antidepressant medication.
Results:
Twelve studies met inclusion criteria, of which four were controlled and eight uncontrolled. Treatment effect sizes were computable for four studies and ranged from 1.23 to 3.10 with a number of better quality studies demonstrating some improvements in patients following a psychological intervention.
Conclusion:
Psychological treatments for depression are commonly delivered and often recommended following the failure of medication. The paucity of evidence for their effectiveness in these situations is a significant problem. There is a need for studies with a strong controlled design investigating the effectiveness of psychological treatments for patients with treatment-resistant depression.
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