Group Psychological Therapy Program in Adult Patients with Congenital Heart Disease and Anxious-Depressive Symptoms.

: Anxiety and depression are significant mental health concerns for individuals with congenital heart disease (CHD). As group therapy has proven to be a valuable and effective treatment option for managing anxiety and depression, the aim of this study was to determine its effects on patients with CHD and anxious-depressive symptoms. : We used non-pharmacological psychological group intervention, of six weekly sessions of 90 min each, administered by trained personnel, in adult patients with CHD.

Predictors of good outcome in patients with refractory bipolar disorder after a drug or a drug and cognitive-behavioral treatment.

Objective: The objective of the present research study was to analyze the variables involved in the favorable prognosis of patients with refractory bipolar disorder after a drug or a drug and cognitive-behavioral treatment.

Methods: A sample of 40 patients was divided into 2 groups: (1) combined drug plus psychoeducational and cognitive-behavioral treatment or (2) drug treatment only (control group). We used a multigroup design with repeated measures at different times (baseline, posttreatment, 6-month follow-up, and 12-month follow-up) to evaluate the following variables: age, sex, number of hospitalizations, type of treatment, mania (Young Mania Rating Scale, or YMRS) and depression (Beck Depression Index, or BDI) symptoms, subsyndromal symptoms (BDI >7; YMRS >6), global suffering index, general index of social ability, self-esteem (Rosenberg scale), inadaptation (inadaptation Scale), anxiety (State-Trait Anxiety Inventory), quality of life (Global Activity Functioning), and health (European Quality of Life Scale).

How effective is a psychological intervention program for patients with refractory bipolar disorder? A randomized controlled trial.

Background: The aim of this research was to evaluate the short-term and long-term efficacy of a combined treatment (pharmacological + psychoeducational and cognitive-behavioral therapy) as compared with a standard pharmacological treatment in patients with refractory bipolar disorder.

Method: 40 patients were randomly assigned to one of the following: Experimental group under combined treatment, and Control group under pharmacological treatment. We used an analysis of variance (ANOVA), including one or two factors, with repeated measures at different evaluation times: baseline, post-treatment, 6-month follow-up and 12-month follow-up.

Long-term efficacy of a psychological intervention program for patients with refractory bipolar disorder: a pilot study.

The aim of this research was to test the long-term efficacy of combined standard treatment (pharmacotherapy and adjunctive psychosocial treatment based on a cognitive-behavioral model) compared with standard drug treatment for patients with recurrent bipolar disorder. Twenty patients selected according to DSM-IV-TR criteria were randomized to 1) combined treatment or 2) control treatment. A multigroup experimental design with repeated assessment measures (pre-treatment, post-treatment, 6-month follow-up, and 12-month follow-up) was used.