title: Empirically supported methods of short-term psychodynamic therapy in depression - towards an evidence-based unified protocol.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  There is evidence that psychotherapy is helpful in depressive disorders, with no significant differences between psychotherapies. For psychodynamic therapy (PDT) various models prove to be efficacious. Thus, the evidence for PDT is "scattered" between different forms of PDT, also implying problems in training of psychotherapy and in transferring research to clinical practice. A unified protocol based on empirically-supported methods of PDT in depression may contribute to solve these problems
  
  
  METHODS
  Systematic search for randomized controlled trials fulfilling the following criteria: (a) individual psychodynamic therapy (PDT) of depressive disorders, (b) treatment manuals or manual-like guidelines, (c) PDT proved to be efficacious compared to control conditions, (d) reliable measures for diagnosis and outcome, and (f) adult patients.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Fourteen RCTs fulfilled the inclusion criteria. By a systematic review of the applied methods of PDT seven treatment components were identified. A high consistency between components was found. The components were conceptualized in the form of seven interrelated treatment modules.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  A unified psychodynamic protocol for depression may enhance the empirical status of PDT, facilitate both the training in psychotherapy and the transfer of research to clinical practice and may have an impact on the health care system.
authors.affiliation: Clinic of Psychosomatics and Psychotherapy, University of Giessen, Ludwigstrasse 76, 35392 Giessen, Germany. Electronic address: Falk.Leichsenring@psycho.med.uni-giessen.de.
authors.forename: Falk
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Leichsenring
authors.affiliation: Clinic for General Internal Medicine and Psychosomatics, University of Heidelberg, Germany.
authors.forename: Henning
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Schauenburg
mesh_terms: D003863:Depression / Q000628:therapy; D003866:Depressive Disorder / Q000523:psychology / Q000628:therapy*; D036262:Empirical Research; D019317:Evidence-Based Medicine; D006801:Humans; D064889:Psychotherapy, Psychodynamic; D016032:Randomized Controlled Trials as Topic; D000078202:Systematic Reviews as Topic; D016896:Treatment Outcome
keywords: Depressive disorders; Empirically supported treatments; Psychodynamic therapy; Unified protocol