title: Analysis of the components of a cognitive-behavioral intervention administered via conference call for preventing depression among non-professional caregivers: a pilot study.
abstract: The primary aim was to assess the feasibility/acceptability of a preventive cognitive-behavioral intervention implemented via conference call for caregivers. The secondary aim was to conduct a preliminary assessment of the efficacy of the behavioral activation component alone compared to the complete cognitive-behavioral intervention.
  
  
  
  Sixty-one caregivers (mean age 58.4 years) were randomly assigned to a cognitive-behavioral intervention via conference call (CBC, n = 20), a behavioral activation intervention via conference call (BAC, n = 22) or a control group receiving usual care (CG, n = 19). Both interventions consisted of five 90-minute group sessions implemented weekly.
  
  
  
  Only 6.6% of caregivers discontinued the study. In the CBC and BAC groups, attendance and satisfaction with the intervention were similarly high among both groups. Homework adherence was also high in both groups. At post-treatment, there was a lower incidence of depression in the CBC and BAC groups compared to the CG (0.0% for BAC and CBC vs. 10.5% for CG). The relative risk was 0.0, and number needed to treat was 10 in both groups. Depressive symptoms were significantly reduced in the CBC and BAC groups compared to the CG (d = 2.18 and d = 2.06).
  
  
  
  The results support the feasibility of the intervention. Moreover, the BAC intervention was non-inferior to the CBC intervention for reducing depressive symptoms.
authors.affiliation: a Department of Clinical Psychology and Psychobiology , University of Santiago de Compostela , Santiago de Compostela , Spain.
authors.forename: Fernando L
authors.initials: FL
authors.lastname: Vázquez
authors.affiliation: b Department of Psychiatry, Radiology and Public Health , University of Santiago de Compostela , Santiago de Compostela , Spain.
authors.forename: Ángela
authors.initials: Á
authors.lastname: Torres
authors.affiliation: c Research Group in Mental Health and Psychopathology (GRISAMP) , University of Santiago de Compostela , Santiago de Compostela , Spain.
authors.forename: Patricia
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Otero
authors.affiliation: c Research Group in Mental Health and Psychopathology (GRISAMP) , University of Santiago de Compostela , Santiago de Compostela , Spain.
authors.forename: Vanessa
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Blanco
authors.affiliation: a Department of Clinical Psychology and Psychobiology , University of Santiago de Compostela , Santiago de Compostela , Spain.
authors.forename: Olga
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Díaz
authors.affiliation: d Hospital Universitari i Politecnic La Fe , Valencia , Spain.
authors.forename: Luis E
authors.initials: LE
authors.lastname: Estévez
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D017028:Caregivers / Q000523:psychology*; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D015928:Cognitive Behavioral Therapy / Q000379:methods*; D003863:Depression / Q000517:prevention & control* / Q000628:therapy; D005240:Feasibility Studies; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010865:Pilot Projects; D016037:Single-Blind Method; D013689:Telephone
keywords: Non-professional caregivers; depression; indicated prevention; pilot study; telephone