Cochrane · systematic review · CD004188
Couple therapy for depression
Barbato, A, D'Avanzo, B, Parabiaghi, A · Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews · 2018 · Cochrane Library
Common Mental DisordersAMSTAR 2: not assessed
SoF tableOnly the outcomes this review put in its Summary of Findings table are listed (the Cochrane Handbook caps them at about seven per comparison). Its other analyses are not shown here.
Questions
16
current version
GRADE rated
13
No studies
3
Included studies
NR
No studies 3 · 18.8%Ungraded 0 · 0%Very low 10 · 62.5%Low 3 · 18.8%Moderate 0 · 0%High 0 · 0%
Ungraded means an effect was reported without a GRADE rating; it is not a gap. No studies means the review found nothing to answer the question. The six categories are a display order, not a score.
Questions and results
Summary of findings for the comparison with individual psychotherapy
Population: heterosexual adult couples aged > 18 with a partner having a clinical diagnosis of depressive disorder
| Outcome | Effect | Evidence | Status / GRADE |
|---|---|---|---|
Depressive symptoms at end of treatment Beck Depression Inventory (BDI) or Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (HDRS). BDI is a self‐report inventory including 21 questions, each answer being scored from 0 to 3 with the total score ranging from 0 to ... | no estimate extracted | 9 studies · 304 participants | Low Downgraded: risk of bias, indirectness |
Persistence of depression at end of treatment Beck Depression Inventory (BDI) or Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (HDRS) | RR 0.94 [0.72, 1.22] | 6 studies · 237 participants | Low Downgraded: risk of bias, imprecision, inconsistency, indirectness |
Dropouts | RR 0.85 [0.51, 1.41] | 9 studies · 364 participants | Low Downgraded: risk of bias, imprecision, inconsistency, indirectness |
Relationship distress at end of treatment Dyadic Adjustment Scale (DAS) or Maudsley Marital Questionnaire (MMQ). DAS is a self‐report inventory with 32 items, with the total score ranging from 0 to 151. Higher scores indicate less distress. MMQ is... | no estimate extracted | 6 studies · 187 participants | Very low Downgraded: risk of bias, imprecision, inconsistency, indirectness |
Summary of findings for the comparison with drug therapy
Population: heterosexual adult couples aged >18 with a partner having a clinical diagnosis of depressive disorder
| Outcome | Effect | Evidence | Status / GRADE |
|---|---|---|---|
Depressive symptoms at end of treatment Beck Depression Inventory (BDI) or Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (HDRS). BDI is a self‐report inventory including 21 questions, each answer being scored from 0 to 3 with the total score ranging from 0 to ... | no estimate extracted | 1 study · 12 participants | Very low Downgraded: risk of bias, indirectness |
Persistence of depression at end of treatment | no estimate extracted | NR | No studies |
Dropouts | RR 0.31 [0.15, 0.61] | 2 studies · 95 participants | Very low Downgraded: risk of bias, indirectness |
Relationship distress at post‐treatment Dyadic Adjustment Scale (DAS) or Maudsley Marital Questionnaire (MMQ). DAS is a self‐report inventory with 32 items, with the total score ranging from 0 to 151. Higher scores indicate less distress. MMQ is a... | no estimate extracted | 1 study · 12 participants | Very low Downgraded: risk of bias, indirectness |
Summary of findings for the comparison with no/minimal treatment
Population: heterosexual adult couples aged > 18 with a partner having a clinical diagnosis of depressive disorder
| Outcome | Effect | Evidence | Status / GRADE |
|---|---|---|---|
Depressive symptoms at the end of treatment Beck Depression Inventory (BDI) or Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (HDRS). BDI is a self‐report inventory including 21 questions, each answer being scored from 0 to 3 with the total score ranging from 0... | no estimate extracted | 3 studies · 90 participants | Very low Downgraded: risk of bias, imprecision |
Persistence of depression at the end of treatment Beck Depression Inventory (BDI) or Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (HDRS) | RR 0.48 [0.32, 0.7] | 2 studies · 65 participants | Very low Downgraded: risk of bias, imprecision |
Dropouts | no estimate extracted | NR | No studies |
Relationship distress at the end of treatment Dyadic Adjustment Scale (DAS) or Maudsley Marital Questionnaire (MMQ). DAS is a self‐report inventory with 32 items, with the total score ranging from 0 to 151. Higher scores indicate less distress. MM... | no estimate extracted | 2 studies · 60 participants | Very low Downgraded: risk of bias, imprecision |
Summary of findings for the comparison between couple therapy plus drug therapy and drug therapy alone
Population: heterosexual adult couples aged > 18 with a partner having a clinical diagnosis of depressive disorder
| Outcome | Effect | Evidence | Status / GRADE |
|---|---|---|---|
Depressive symptoms at the end of treatment Beck Depression Inventory (BDI) or Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (HDRS). BDI is a self‐report inventory including 21 questions, each answer being scored from 0 to 3 with the total score ranging from 0... | no estimate extracted | 2 studies · 34 participants | Very low Downgraded: risk of bias, imprecision, inconsistency |
Persistence of depression at the end of treatment | no estimate extracted | NR | No studies |
Dropouts | RR 1.03 [0.07, 15.52] | 2 studies · 45 participants | Very low Downgraded: risk of bias, imprecision, inconsistency |
Relationship distress at the end of treatment Dyadic Adjustment Scale (DAS) or Quality of Marriage Index ‐ QMI. DAS is a self‐report inventory with 32 items, with the total score ranging from 0 to 151. Higher scores indicate less distress. QMI is ... | no estimate extracted | 2 studies · 34 participants | Very low Downgraded: risk of bias, imprecision, inconsistency |