title: Family-based interpersonal psychotherapy for depressed preadolescents: an open-treatment trial.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To conduct an open-treatment trial to evaluate the feasibility, acceptability and clinical outcomes of using a family-based adaptation of Interpersonal Psychotherapy for Depressed Adolescents with a sample of preadolescents (ages 9-12) presenting for outpatient treatment for depression.
  
  
  METHODS
  Sixteen preadolescents who met criteria for a depressive disorder according to Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fourth Edition participated in this open-treatment trial of family-based interpersonal psychotherapy (FB-IPT). Parents chose whether their preadolescents should receive FB-IPT only (n = 10) or FB-IPT with antidepressant medication (n = 6). Pre- and post-treatment assessments included clinician-administered measures of depression and global functioning, and parent- and child-reported anxiety symptoms.
  
  
  RESULTS
  FB-IPT was associated with high treatment compliance rates (88%) and was associated with significant decreases in preadolescents' depressive and anxiety symptoms. Preadolescents who received FB-IPT only were as likely as those receiving FB-IPT and medication to have significant reductions in depressive symptoms and anxiety symptoms, and to experience significant improvement in global functioning. Parents were more likely to choose combination treatment when their depressed preadolescents had a comorbid anxiety disorder.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Further research on FB-IPT is needed to establish its efficacy as compared with usual outpatient treatment, its ability to be disseminated to child clinicians with varying levels of training and in adequately powered randomized controlled trials that can detect group differences.
authors.affiliation: University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine-Psychiatry, Western Psychiatric Institute and Clinic, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 15206, USA. dietzlj@upmc.edu
authors.forename: Laura J
authors.initials: LJ
authors.lastname: Dietz
authors.forename: Laura
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Mufson
authors.forename: Holly
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Irvine
authors.forename: David A
authors.initials: DA
authors.lastname: Brent
mesh_terms: D002648:Child; D003866:Depressive Disorder / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000628:therapy*; D005196:Family Therapy / Q000379:methods; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D011569:Psychiatric Status Rating Scales; D011613:Psychotherapy / Q000379:methods; D016896:Treatment Outcome