Pharmacological Interventions versus Combined Treatment of Depression: A Prospective Study

Introduction: Depression is a common disease worldwide but still, the role of combined treatment (pharmacological and psycho logical interventions) needs to be clarif ied. The study aims to compare the effectiveness of integrated treatment versus exclusive pharmacological intervention of depression. Materials and methods: The observational prospective study provided the collection of data relating to out-patients evaluated through the administration of the Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (HDRS), the Hamilton Anxiety Rating Scale (HARS), and the Clinical Global Impression Scale (CGI) both at T0 and at a 3-month follow up visit ( T1). Results: A statically signif icant association between sex (female) and psychotherapy utiliza-tion emerged. A statistically signif icant association between education (graduated patients) and psychotherapy use was observed. The other qualitative variables showed no statistically signif icance associations. No signif icant association between drop out and type of treatment emerged. Discussion: Clinical research has not yet conclu-sively demonstrated the superiority of combined therapy over single treatments. As regards sex, the result is in line with the professional literature and provides support in describing how men have more stigmatizing beliefs about treatment of mental health. As regards education, graduated people present higher rates of adherence prob-ably because they may have major introspective capacity and predisposition to com-munication. Conclusions: Limitations consist in small sample and short duration of the follow-up (3 months). The strengths, in the type of setting and the respect for routine clinical practice. Future perspective of the research could focus on applica-tion of rating instruments to highlight the variables involved in depressive disorder.