Effect of group reminiscence therapy for depression in the elderly: A systematic review

Abstract

Objective To assess the effect and feasibility of group reminiscence therapy on depression in the elderly. Methods We searched the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials( -2013), Medline (1982-2013), Embase (1974-2013), AMED (-2013), CINAHL(-2013), CMB(1994-2013), VIP, CNKI and Wanfang to collect the randomized controlled trials (RCTs) in which the group reminiscence therapy was used to treat depression in elderly patients.The studies were selected according to the inclusion and exclusion criteria by two reviewers, and the quality of included studies was evaluated according to Cochrane Handbook and performed meta-analyses by using the Cochrane Collaboration's RevMan 5.2 software. Results A total of 10 RCTs involving 944 patients were included. The results of meta-analysis showed that as compared with conventional treatment, group reminiscence therapy on the basis of conventional treatment was more effective in decreasing depression score〔MD=–4.86, 95%CI(–5.10, –4.65)〕. Compared with psychological counseling, group reminiscence therapy had more effect on decreasing depression score〔MD=–9.34, 95%CI(–10.77,–7.91)〕. There was no significant difference in the dropout rate between group reminiscence therapy and other control treatments〔RR=1.22, 95%CI (0.79–1.88)〕. The descriptive analysis showed that group reminiscence therapy was effective in alleviating the symptoms of depression. Conclusions Group reminiscence therapy can improve the symptoms of depression in elderly patients and conforms to the principle of economic benefit. However, the results should be interpreted with caution because of the low quality of the included studies. Key words: Psychotherapy; Depressive disorder; Systematic review; Meta-analysis