Neuropsychological outcomes after psychosocial intervention for depression in Parkinson's disease.

The authors describe neuropsychological outcomes in people with Parkinson's disease (PD) after their participation in an NIH-sponsored, randomized, controlled trial of cognitive-behavioral treatment for depression. Improvements in mood were associated with modest gains in verbal memory and executive functioning over the 10-week treatment period and accounted for greater variance in neuropsychological outcomes at the end of treatment than other known correlates of cognitive functioning in PD, such as disease severity, age, and education. Baseline working memory and executive skills were also associated with depression improvement over time.

Barriers to mental health care utilization in Parkinson's disease.

Background: Parkinson's disease (PD) is frequently complicated by co-occurring psychiatric problems such as depression and anxiety that negatively affect the course and management of the illness. Yet, in most cases, these psychiatric comorbidities are neither recognized nor treated to remission. The primary purpose of this study was to identify and describe barriers to mental health care utilization for people with PD.

Predictors of treatment response to cognitive-behavioral therapy for depression in Parkinson's disease.

Objective: The purpose of this study was to examine predictors of treatment response to cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) for depression in Parkinson's disease (PD).

Method: The sample comprised 80 depressed (DSM-IV criteria) adults with PD (60% male) and their caregivers who participated in an National Institutes of Health-sponsored randomized-controlled trial of CBT vs. clinical monitoring from April 2007 until July 2010.