Therapy and counseling as effective as drugs in early stages of depression, says study

The researchers looked at 240 patients suffering from moderate to severe depression. Some of the patients received talk therapies, while others were given drugs. After 16 weeks, 58 percent of both groups reported having positive responses to their respective therapies.

• Drugs not the only answer to depression: study.
• Psychological therapy and counselling can be just as effective as drugs in the early stages of treating moderate to severe depression, a study has found.
• A report from the University of Pennsylvania says the findings run counter to current practice in the United States.
• "On the whole, these findings do not support the current American Psychiatric Association (APA) guidelines" that state most patients at that stage "will require medication," the report said.
• "It appears that cognitive therapy can be as effective as medications, even among more severely depressed outpatients, at least when provided by experienced cognitive therapists," the study said.
• Researchers said they looked at 240 moderately to severely depressed patients, some of whom were given drugs and others psychological therapy in weekly and sometimes twice-weekly 50-minute sessions.
• After 16 weeks of treatment, 58 per cent of the patients had responded to both the drug and therapy treatments, the study said.