Abstract
This randomized controlled trial examines the efficacy of metacognitive therapy (MCT) for depression. Thirty-nine patients with depression were randomly assigned to immediate MCT (10 sessions) or a 10-week wait list period (WL). The WL-group received 10 sessions of MCT after the waiting period. Two participants dropped out from WL and none dropped out of immediate MCT treatment. Participants receiving MCT improved significantly more than the WL group. Large controlled effect sizes were observed for both depressive (d = 2.51) and anxious symptoms (d = 1.92). Approximately 70–80% could be classified as recovered at post-treatment and 6 months follow-up following immediate MCT, whilst 5% of the WL patients recovered during the waiting period. The results suggest that MCT is a promising treatment for depression. Future controlled studies should compare MCT with other active treatments.
Highlights
Depression has been described as one of the most common psychiatric disorders, with a high degree of comorbidity (Kessler et al, 2003)
The two groups were similar on all variables with no statistically significant differences between them at pre-treatment
The analysis suggests the effect-size to be overestimated caused by publication bias and poor quality of some studies included in the meta-analysis
Summary
Depression has been described as one of the most common psychiatric disorders, with a high degree of comorbidity (Kessler et al, 2003). By 2030, depression is predicted to be the second-leading cause of disease burden worldwide after HIV/AIDS (Mathers and Loncar, 2006). It is essential to develop effective treatments for depression. Cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) is the recommended treatment for depression, with a large number of clinical trials supporting its efficacy (Butler et al, 2006). Only 40–58% of patients receiving CBT are recovered at post-treatment (Dimidjian et al, 2006). Antidepressant medication has a similar efficacy in treating depression (Parker et al, 2008). It is necessary to develop new treatments that have greater short-term and long-term efficacy
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
