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Annemieke van Straten

Publications and source records attributed to Annemieke van Straten.

10 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed2006

Problem solving therapies for depression: a meta-analysis.

PURPOSE: In the past decades, the effects of problem-solving therapy (PST) for depression have been examined in several randomized controlled studies. However, until now no meta-analysis has tried to integrate the results of these studies. METHODS: We conducted a systematic literature search and identified 13 randomized studies examining the effects of PST, with a total of 1133 subjects. The quality of studies varied. RESULTS: The mean standardized effect size was 0.34 in the fixed effects model and 0.83 in the random effects model, with very high heterogeneity. Subgroup analyses indicated significantly lower effects for individual interventions in studies with subjects who met criteria for major depression, studies in which intention-to-treat analyses were conducted instead of completers-only analyses, and studies with pill placebo and care-as-usual control groups. Heterogeneity was high, and the subgroup analyses did not result in clear indications of what caused this high heterogeneity. This indicates that PST has varying effects on depression, and that it is not known to date what determines whether PST has larger of smaller effects. CONCLUSION: Although there is no doubt that PST can be an effective treatment for depression, more research is needed to ascertain the conditions and subjects in which these positive effects are realized.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2006

Behavioral activation treatments of depression: a meta-analysis.

Activity scheduling is a behavioral treatment of depression in which patients learn to monitor their mood and daily activities, and how to increase the number of pleasant activities and to increase positive interactions with their environment. We conducted a meta-analysis of randomized effect studies of activity scheduling. Sixteen studies with 780 subjects were included. The pooled effect size indicating the difference between intervention and control conditions at post-test was 0.87 (95% CI: 0.60 - 1.15). This is a large effect. Heterogeneity was low in all analyses. The comparisons with other psychological treatments at post-test resulted in a non-significant pooled effect size of 0.13 in favor of activity scheduling. In ten studies activity scheduling was compared to cognitive therapy, and the pooled effect size indicating the difference between these two types of treatment was 0.02. The changes from post-test to follow-up for activity scheduling were non-significant, indicating that the benefits of the treatments were retained at follow-up. The differences between activity scheduling and cognitive therapy at follow-up were also non-significant. Activity scheduling is an attractive treatment for depression, not only because it is relatively uncomplicated, time-efficient and does not require complex skills from patients or therapist, but also because this meta-analysis found clear indications that it is effective.

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy↗
PubMed2006

Personality traits and health-related quality of life in patients with mood and anxiety disorders.

BACKGROUND: Health-related quality of life (HRQL) is an accepted outcome measure in patients with mood and anxiety disorders. Yet, surprisingly little attention has been paid to the determinants. In this paper we test the hypothesis that it is associated with personality traits while controlling for mental disorders. METHODS: A large sample of outpatients (n = 640) with mood and anxiety disorders was studied. The empirically supported five factor model of normal personality traits was assessed using the NEO-FFI and includes: neuroticism, extraversion, openness to experience, agreeableness, and conscientiousness. Mental disorders were assessed with the CIDI, and HRQL with the SF-36. RESULTS: Regression analyses revealed that the NEO-FFI scores, with the exception of conscientiousness, were significantly associated with SF-36 subscales and summary scores, independently from the mental disorders. The percentage of explained variance due to the personality traits was highest for the subscales Vitality (10.0%), Mental Health (13.3%) and the Mental Health Summary Score (9.5%). Furthermore, specific personality traits were related to specific SF-36 subscales. CONCLUSIONS: A low HRQL of patients with mood or anxiety disorders is not only determined by the disease or the current health but is also shaped by personality traits that are relatively stable throughout an individual's life time.

Adult↗
PubMed2006

When children of problem drinkers grow old: does the increased risk of mental disorders persist?

It is well established that children of problem drinkers have an increased risk of developing mental health problems, not only during childhood but also when they grow up into adolescents and adults. However, it has not been examined whether this risk is also present during the old age of these children. In this study, we examine the question whether this increased risk is present in inhabitants of eleven residential homes (mean age 85 years). A total of 355 residents indicated whether one of their parents ever had problems with alcohol. We also used the MINI diagnostic interview to assess the presence of mental disorders. We found that parental problem drinking was significantly associated with having a major depression (current and lifetime), and with the number of drinks in the past week. No significant relationship was found with alcohol-related disorders and anxiety disorders. It was already known that parental problem drinking results in mental health problems in children. We found clear indications that these problems do not disappear when these children grow old.

Age Factors↗
PubMed2006

Screening and early psychological intervention for depression in schools : systematic review and meta-analysis.

Depression in children and adolescents is considerably undertreated, and the school may be a good setting for identifying and treating depression. We conducted a meta-analysis of studies in which students were screened for depression, and those with depressive symptoms were treated with a psychological intervention. Only randomised controlled trials were included. Eight studies met the inclusion criteria. Five studies focused on younger children (7-14 years) and three studies were aimed at adolescents (12-19 years). In total 5803 students were screened, of whom 7.2% were included in the intervention studies (95% CI: 7.1-7.3). The 'numbers-needed-to-screen' was 31 (95% CI: 27-32), which means that 31 students had to be screened in order to generate one successfully treated case of depression. The effects of the psychological treatments at post-test were compared to control conditions in the 8 studies comprising 12 contrast groups, with a total of 413 students. The mean effect size was 0.55 (95% CI: 0.35-0.76). There were not enough studies to examine whether specific psychotherapies were superior to other psychotherapies. Although the number of studies is small and their quality is limited, screening and early intervention at schools may be an effective strategy to reduce the burden of disease from depression in children and adolescents. More research on the (negative) effects of these interventions is needed.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2006

Psychological treatment of late-life depression: a meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials.

BACKGROUND: Older meta-analyses of the effects of psychological treatments for depression in older adults have found that these treatments have large effects. However, these earlier meta-analyses also included non-randomized studies, and did not include newer high-quality randomized controlled trials. METHODS: We conducted a meta-analysis of randomized studies on psychological treatments for depression in older adults. RESULTS: Twenty-five studies were included, of which 17 compared a psychological intervention to a control condition (mainly waiting list and care-as-usual control groups). The quality of the included studies varied. Psychological treatments have moderate to large effects on depression in older adults (standardized mean effect size d = 0.72). Heterogeneity was very low. No differences were found between individual, group or bibliotherapy format, or between cognitive behavioral therapy and other types of psychological treatment. The effects were comparable in studies where depression was defined according to diagnostic criteria, and those in which depression was measured with self-rating questionnaires. CONCLUSION: Although the quality of many studies was not optimal, the results of this meta-analysis support the results of earlier meta-analyses, which also included non-randomized studies. Psychological treatments are effective in the treatment of depression in older adults.

Age Factors↗
PubMed2006

Cost-utility of brief psychological treatment for depression and anxiety.

BACKGROUND: The cost-utility of brief therapy compared with cognitive-behavioural therapy (CBT) and care as usual in the treatment of depression and anxiety has not yet been determined. AIMS: To assess the cost-utility of brief therapy compared with CBT and care as usual. METHOD: A pragmatic randomised controlled trial involving 702 patients was conducted at 7 Dutch mental healthcare centres (MHCs). Patients were interviewed at baseline and then every 3 months over a period of 1.5 years, during which time data were collected on direct costs, indirect costs and quality of life. RESULTS: The mean direct costs of treatment at the MHCs were significantly lower for brief therapy than for CBT and care as usual. However, after factoring in other healthcare costs and indirect costs, no significant differences between the treatment groups could be detected. We found no significant differences in quality-adjusted life-years between the groups. CONCLUSIONS: Cost-utility did not differ significantly between the three treatment groups.

Adult↗
PubMed2005

Examining differential effects of psychological treatment of depressive disorder: an application of trajectory analyses.

BACKGROUND: Although different psychological treatments of depression seem equally effective, studies in this area have not taken sufficient account of the heterogeneity among patients. Modern techniques for longitudinal data analysis can be helpful in examining differential effects of psychological interventions on specific subpopulations of patients. METHODS: Outpatients in mental health care, diagnosed with DSM-IV major depressive disorder, were randomly assigned to cognitive behavior therapy (N=199) or treatment as usual (N=226). Every 3 months for a total of 1.5 years, depressive symptomatology was measured using the SCL-90. Growth mixture modeling techniques were used to identify different trajectory classes of patients. The impact of type of treatment (treatment as usual vs. cognitive behavior therapy) was examined for each identified trajectory. RESULTS: On average, patients in both test conditions improved significantly from baseline to posttest, and no significant difference was found between the conditions. However, four different trajectory classes could be distinguished within the sample. Most patients were classified into the two classes with the lowest depression scores at baseline (31% and 33% of the total sample). For these two classes, no significant differences in the course of depressive symptoms were found between the two conditions. In the two classes with the more severe depression scores (10% and 26% of the sample), however, cognitive behavior therapy was significantly more effective than treatment as usual. CONCLUSIONS: Although different treatments may seem to be equally effective, this does not have to be true for all classes of patients. Longitudinal research on the treatment of mental disorders should take heterogeneity among patients into account.

Adult↗
PubMed2005

Personality traits of patients with mood and anxiety disorders.

Although it is well established that personality traits of patients with mental disorder differ significantly from the traits of other persons, differences in personality characteristics between different mental disorders have not been examined very thoroughly. In this study, we examine personality traits in a large sample of outpatients (N=640) with mood and anxiety disorders in differing patterns of comorbidity, using the five-factor model of personality. Mood and anxiety disorders were assessed using the Composite International Diagnostic Inventory, and personality traits were assessed with the NEO Five-Factor Inventory (NEO-FFI). Most of the mean scores on the NEO-FFI scales of the study population were found to be significantly different from the scale scores of the general population. Few differences between NEO-FFI scores for differing patterns of mood and anxiety disorders were found. However, clear differences were found for subjects with one (mood or anxiety) disorder, subjects with two, and subjects with three or more disorders. Neuroticism and agreeableness differed considerably in subjects with one disorder compared with subjects with two or more disorders. The main conclusion is that personality traits appear to be associated with comorbidity and less so with any specific disorder.

Adolescent↗