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Background: Deficits in emotion regulation skills are possible factors maintaining major depressive disorder (MDD). Therefore, the aim of the study was to test whether integrating a systematic emotion regulation training (ERT) enhances the efficacy of routine inpatient cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) for MDD. Methods: In a prospective randomized controlled trial, 432 inpatients meeting criteria for MDD were assigned to receive either routine CBT or CBT enriched with an intense emotion regulation skills training (CBT-ERT). Results: Participants in the CBT-ERT condition demonstrated a significantly greater reduction in depression (response rates - CBT: 75.5%, CBT-ERT: 84.9%; remission rates - CBT: 51.1%, CBT-ERT: 65.1%). Moreover, CBT-ERT participants demonstrated a significantly greater reduction of negative affect, as well as a greater increase of well-being and emotion regulation skills particularly relevant for mental health. Conclusions: Integrating strategies that target emotion regulation skills improves the efficacy of CBT for MDD. Copyright © 2013 S. Karger AG, Basel [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Research on the effectiveness of treatments for subthreshold depression (sD) is still scarce. The aim of the study was to evaluate the efficacy of a web-based guided self-help intervention (GET.ON Mood Enhancer) in the treatment of sD.Methods: Participants with sD (n = 406) recruited from the general population via a large health insurance company were randomly allocated to a web-based cognitive behavioural intervention or to enhanced care-as-usual. The primary outcome was the reduction in depressive symptom severity as measured with the Center for Epidemiological Studies Depression Scale at post-treatment and at 6-month follow-up.Results: Participants in the intervention group showed a significantly greater pre-post reduction in depressive symptom severity (d = 1.06; 95% CI: 0.86-1.27) compared to the control condition (d = 0.29; 95% CI: 0.10-0.49). The corresponding between-group effect size was d = 0.69 (95% CI: 0.49-0.89). At 6-month follow-up the effect was reduced to d = 0.28 (95% CI: 0.09-0.48) but was still statistically significant (F1, 403 = 9.240, p = 0.003).Conclusions: This study lends support to the idea that problem solving coupled with behavioural activation is an effective treatment for sD. In addition, the delivery of this intervention over the Internet might be a promising strategy for the dissemination of psychological interventions for sD on a large scale. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: High relapse rates following acute treatment for common mental health disorders support the importance of developing maintenance phase interventions. Internet-based interventions have been effective for a broad range of mental disorders, but less is known about their potential to enhance long-term outcomes of traditional face-to-face therapy. Therefore, the goal of the present study was to evaluate a transdiagnostic Internet-based maintenance treatment (TIMT) with the purpose of fostering long-term effects of inpatient psychotherapy. Method: In this pragmatic randomized controlled trial, a sample of 400 inpatients with affective, neurotic, and/or behavioral disorders was assigned to either 12 weeks of TIMT + treatment as usual (TAU) or to TAU-only following hospital discharge. TIMT consists of a self-management module, asynchronous patient-coach communication, online patient support group, and online-based monitoring of psychopathological symptoms. Self-ratings of psychopathological symptoms were conducted at the beginning of inpatient treatment (t1), at discharge from inpatient treatment/start of TIMT (t2), and at 3-month (t3) and 12-month follow-ups (t4). Results: The TIMT + TAU group was superior to the TAU-only group with regard to differences in change of general psychopathological symptom severity from discharge to 3- and 12-month follow-up. Moreover, participants of the TIMT + TAU group showed less frequent symptom deteriorations and were more often in remission/recovery than controls. Conclusion: TIMT effectively enhances long-term outcome of inpatient psychotherapy. Copyright © 2013 S. Karger AG, Basel [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]