Document Type
Poster
Associated Faculty
Dr. Valerie Herbert
Sponsoring Academic Department
School of Nursing
Publication Date
2024
Abstract/ Summary
Treatment of pediatric depression is a controversial topic due to the stigma of illness and different views on most effective treatment. Treatments currently focus on the use of antidepressant medication, counseling and therapy, or a combination of these modalities, but evidence is inconclusive on which treatment designs are most effective. These authors pose the question: Among children and adolescents ages 3-17 who have been diagnosed with depression by a physician, does a dual treatment approach decrease inpatient hospitalization compared to cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) or medication used separately? A literature search was conducted on CINAHL, Google Scholar, MEDLINE, Nursing Reference Center Plus, and PUBMED using the following search terms: child* depression, cognitive behav* therapy, fluoxetine, escitalopram, antidepressant, youth. Exclusion criteria include articles older than 2019 and articles that only discuss depression treatment in adults. A total of 11 articles met inclusion criteria. Evidence from the articles supports the use of antidepressant pharmacotherapy in combination with CBT in tailored case-by-case fashion. Most of the articles discuss CBT as first-line treatment, followed by the inclusion of antidepressant medication–most notably fluoxetine. Limitations include limited trial comparisons between CBT and medication, vast differences in provider preferences and risks regarding the prescription of antidepressants in youth, and lack of participant continuation through trials. These findings identify the benefits of combination CBT and antidepressant medication in the treatment of pediatric depression, but the lack of available literature and studies warrants additional trials to confirm these findings and to observe long-term effectiveness of these combination therapies.
Repository Citation
Pollard, Mark; Brown, Peta-Gay; Firstenberg, Jessica; and Libby, Katherine, "Difference of Treatment for Pediatric Depression: Medication or Therapy versus Combined Treatment Approach" (2024). Non-Thesis Student Work. 66.
https://digitalcommons.library.umaine.edu/student_work/66
Version
pre-print (i.e. pre-refereeing)