title: Rational-emotive and cognitive-behavior therapy (REBT/CBT) versus pharmacotherapy versus REBT/CBT plus pharmacotherapy in the treatment of major depressive disorder in youth; a randomized clinical trial.
abstract: Major depressive disorder is a highly prevalent and debilitating condition in youth, so developing efficient treatments is a priority for mental health professionals. Psychotherapy (i.e., cognitive behavioral therapy/CBT), pharmacotherapy (i.e., SSRI medication), and their combination have been shown to be effective in treating youth depression; however, the results are still mixed and there are few studies engaging multi-level analyses (i.e., subjective, cognitive, and biological). Therefore, the aims of this randomized control study (RCT) were both theoretical - integrating psychological and biological markers of depression in a multi-level outcome analysis - and practical - testing the generalizability of previous results on depressed Romanian youth population. Eighty-eight (N=88) depressed Romanian youths were randomly allocated to one of the three treatment arms: group Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy (REBT)/CBT (i.e., a form of CBT), pharmacotherapy (i.e., sertraline), and group REBT/CBT plus pharmacotherapy. The results showed that all outcomes (i.e., subjective, cognitive, and biological) significantly change from pre to post-treatment under all treatment conditions at a similar rate and there were no significant differences among conditions at post-test. In case of categorical analysis of the clinical response rate, we found a non-significant trend favoring group REBT/CBT therapy. Results of analyses concerning outcome interrelations are discussed.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry, Queens University, C/o Providence Care Mental Health Services, 752 King Street West, Kingston, Ontario, Canada K7L 4X3. Electronic address: iftenef@providencecare.ca.
authors.forename: Felicia
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Iftene
authors.affiliation: Department of Neuroscience, Iuliu Hatieganu University of Medicine and Pharmacy, Cluj Napoca, Romania. Electronic address: predescu.elena@umfcluj.ro.
authors.forename: Elena
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Predescu
authors.affiliation: Department of Clinical Psychology and Psychotherapy/International Institute for the Advanced Study of Psychotherapy and Applied Mental Health, Babeş-Bolyai University, No 37 Republici Street, 400015 Cluj-Napoca, Romania. Electronic address: simonastefan@psychology.ro.
authors.forename: Simona
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Stefan
authors.affiliation: Department of Clinical Psychology and Psychotherapy/International Institute for the Advanced Study of Psychotherapy and Applied Mental Health, Babeş-Bolyai University, No 37 Republici Street, 400015 Cluj-Napoca, Romania. Electronic address: daniel.david@ubbcluj.ro.
authors.forename: Daniel
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: David
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D015928:Cognitive Behavioral Therapy; D003131:Combined Modality Therapy; D003865:Major Depressive Disorder / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000523:psychology / Q000628:therapy*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D011615:Psychotherapy, Group; D011617:Psychotherapy, Rational-Emotive; D012383:Romania; D020280:Sertraline / Q000627:therapeutic use*
chemical_list: D020280:Sertraline
keywords: Clinical trial; Group rational-emotive and cognitive-behavior therapy; Pharmacotherapy; Youth depression