Combined Depression Treatment Helps Patients Dealing with Mental Health Issues

Statistics show that as many as one in 10 adults suffer from depression--a mental health issue that can lead to other serious health complications if left untreated.

Researchers have found that a new treatment route could be particularly helpful for those suffering from severe, short-term depression that combines talk therapy with antidepressants to more effectively manage symptoms. 

For the study, researchers recruited 452 adults who currently suffer from depression. The participants were being treated at one of three university medical centers within the United States and assigned to one of two treatment plans: one group received only antidepressants while the others received medication and cognitive therapy.

As cognitive therapy helps to break down potentially hazardous thought processes, participants in the second group were counseled and given appropriate antidepressant medications to help treat their issues.

"We allowed the clinicians to do whatever it took to get the patient better," said lead study author Steven Hollon, a professor of psychology at Vanderbilt University in Nashville, in a news release. "We really pulled out all the stops. We did something that was closer to what people would do in good clinical practice in the real world."

Findings revealed that people with severe depression in the combination group experienced a 30 percent increase for potential recovery. Yet the combination treatment was not anymore effective than medicine by itself for those with mild depression.

Comparing success rates, researchers also found that about 73 percent of people receiving the two made a full recovery, while only 63 percent of patients from the drugs only group did.

"Having the additional therapy component with medication helps patients with depression, clinically," Dr. Scott Krakower, assistant unit chief of psychiatry at Zucker Hillside Hospital in New York City stated according to WebMD. "Medication and therapy should still be used in combination as much as possible, until we know more."

More information regarding the findings can be seen via JAMA Psychiatry.