Treatment of chronically depressed patients: A multisite randomized controlled trial testing the effectiveness of 'Cognitive Behavioral Analysis System of Psychotherapy' (CBASP) for chronic depressions versus usual secondary care

Authors

Jenneke E. Wiersma, VU University
Digna JF. van Schaik, VU University
Patricia van Oppen, VU University
James P. McCullough, Virginia Commonwealth UniversityFollow
Robert A. Schoevers, Mentrum
Jack J. Dekker, Mentrum
Marc BJ. Blom, The Hague
Kristel Maas, The Hague
Johannes H. Smit, VU University
Brenda WJH. Penninx, VU University
Aartjan TF. Beekman, VU University

Document Type

Article

Original Publication Date

2008

Journal/Book/Conference Title

BMC Psychiatry

Volume

8

DOI of Original Publication

10.1186/1471-244X-8-18

Comments

Originally published at http://dx.doi.org/10.1186/1471-244X-8-18

Date of Submission

August 2014

Abstract

Background

'Cognitive Behavioral Analysis System of Psychotherapy' (CBASP) is a form of psychotherapy specifically developed for patients with chronic depression. In a study in the U.S., remarkable favorable effects of CBASP have been demonstrated. However, no other studies have as yet replicated these findings and CBASP has not been tested outside the United States. This protocol describes a randomized controlled trial on the effectiveness of CBASP in the Netherlands.

Methods/Design

The purpose of the present paper is to report the study protocol of a multisite randomized controlled trial testing the effectiveness of 'Cognitive Behavioral Analysis System of Psychotherapy' (CBASP) for chronic depression in the Netherlands. In this study, CBASP in combination with medication, will be tested versus usual secondary care in combination with medication. The aim is to recruit 160 patients from three mental health care organizations. Depressive symptoms will be assessed at baseline, after 8 weeks, 16 weeks, 32 weeks and 52 weeks, using the 28-item Inventory for Depressive Symptomatology (IDS). Effect modification by co morbid anxiety, alcohol consumption, general and social functioning and working alliance will be tested. GEE analyses of covariance, controlling for baseline value and center will be used to estimate the overall treatment effectiveness (difference in IDS score) at post-treatment and follow up. The primary analysis will be by 'intention to treat' using double sided tests. An economic analysis will compare the two groups in terms of mean costs and cost-effectiveness from a societal perspective.

Discussion

The study will provide an answer to the question whether the favorable effects of CBASP can be replicated outside the US.

Trial Registration

The Dutch Cochrane Center, NTR1090.

Rights

© 2008 Wiersma et al; licensee BioMed Central Ltd. This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

Is Part Of

VCU Psychology Publications