Cognitive-Behavioral Psychotherapy for Anxiety and Depressive Disorders in Children and Adolescents: An Evidence-Based Medicine Review

✍ Scribed by COMPTON, SCOTT N.; MARCH, JOHN S.; BRENT, DAVID; ALBANO, ANNE MARIE; WEERSING, V. ROBIN; CURRY, JOHN

• Book ID: 125477126
• Publisher: Elsevier Science
• Year: 2004
• Tongue: English
• Weight: 173 KB
• Volume: 43
• Category: Article
• ISSN: 1527-5418
• DOI: 10.1097/01.chi.0000127589.57468.bf

✦ Synopsis

Objective: To review the literature on the cognitive-behavioral treatment of children and adolescents with anxiety and depressive disorders within the conceptual framework of evidence-based medicine. Method: The psychiatric and psychological literature was systematically searched for controlled trials applying cognitive-behavioral treatment to pediatric anxiety and depressive disorders. Results: For both anxiety and depression, substantial evidence supports the efficacy of problem-specific cognitive-behavioral interventions. Comparisons with wait-list, inactive control, and active control conditions suggest medium to large effects for symptom reduction in primary outcome domains. Conclusions:From an evidence-based perspective, cognitive-behavioral therapy is currently the treatment of choice for anxiety and depressive disorders in children and adolescents. Future research in this area will need to focus on comparing cognitivebehavioral psychotherapy with other treatments, component analyses, and the application of exportable protocol-driven treatments to divergent settings and patient populations.