Psycho-Babble Medication | about biological treatments | Framed
This thread | Show all | Post follow-up | Start new thread | List of forums | Search | FAQ

Patients Who Choose Treatment Do Better

Posted by Laurie Beth on September 26, 2005, at 17:06:43

Patients Who Choose Depression Treatment Do Better

Reuters Health

Tuesday, September 20, 2005


NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Allowing depressed patients to select their own treatment -- drug therapy, counseling or a combination of both -- may improve outcomes, researchers in Seattle report.

The findings are based on a study of 335 adult with a clinical diagnosis of depression. The subjects were surveyed regarding their preferred therapy and this was compared with the actual treatment received.

Dr. Susan C. Hedrick, from the VA Puget Sound Healthcare System, and colleagues, conducted telephone interviews to assess changes in functional status, severity of depression, disability, and other health outcomes at 1 week, 3 months, and 9 months.

Fifteen percent of patients preferred medication alone and these subjects were older and more likely to be white and married compared with the 24 percent who preferred just counseling or the 60 percent who preferred both, the report indicates.

Overall, 72 percent of the subjects received treatment that matched their preference, the investigators report in the Annals of Behavioral Medicine.

Although depression symptoms improved among patients in both groups, those who received a preferred treatment experienced more rapid improvements than those who received a therapy not matching their preference.

Co-author Dr. Edmund F. Chaney said in a statement: "The positive impact of treatment was more noticeable in the early stages of treatment. Although we can't say for certain, it might be that the preference-matched patients were better able to stick with the treatment plan in the early stages."


Share
Tweet  

Thread

 

Post a new follow-up

Your message only Include above post


Notify the administrators

They will then review this post with the posting guidelines in mind.

To contact them about something other than this post, please use this form instead.

 

Start a new thread

 
Google
dr-bob.org www
Search options and examples
[amazon] for
in

This thread | Show all | Post follow-up | Start new thread | FAQ
Psycho-Babble Medication | Framed

poster:Laurie Beth thread:559894
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20050921/msgs/559894.html