Joanna L. Hudson

Characteristics of effective collaborative care for treatment of depression: a systematic review and meta-regression of 74 randomised controlled trials

Background Collaborative care is a complex intervention based on chronic disease management models and is effective in the management of depression. However, there is still uncertainty about which components of collaborative care are effective. We used meta-regression to identify factors in collaborative care associated with improvement in patient outcomes (depressive symptoms) and the process of care (use of anti-depressant medication). Methods and Findings Systematic review with meta-regression. The Cochrane Collaboration Depression, Anxiety and Neurosis Group trials registers were searched from inception to 9th February 2012. An update was run in the CENTRAL trials database on 29th December 2013. Inclusion criteria were: randomised controlled trials of collaborative care for adults ≥18 years with a primary diagnosis of depression or mixed anxiety and depressive disorder. Random effects meta-regression was used to estimate regression coefficients with 95% confidence intervals (CIs) between study level covariates and depressive symptoms and relative risk (95% CI) and anti-depressant use. The association between anti-depressant use and improvement in depression was also explored. Seventy four trials were identified (85 comparisons, across 21,345 participants). Collaborative care that included psychological interventions predicted improvement in depression (β coefficient −0.11, 95% CI −0.20 to −0.01, p = 0.03). Systematic identification of patients (relative risk 1.43, 95% CI 1.12 to 1.81, p = 0.004) and the presence of a chronic physical condition (relative risk 1.32, 95% CI 1.05 to 1.65, p = 0.02) predicted use of anti-depressant medication. Conclusion Trials of collaborative care that included psychological treatment, with or without anti-depressant medication, appeared to improve depression more than those without psychological treatment. Trials that used systematic methods to identify patients with depression and also trials that included patients with a chronic physical condition reported improved use of anti-depressant medication. However, these findings are limited by the observational nature of meta-regression, incomplete data reporting, and the use of study aggregates.

Exploring the relationship between cognitive illness representations and poor emotional health and their combined association with diabetes self-care. A systematic review with meta-analysis.

OBJECTIVE Depression and anxiety are common in diabetes and are associated with lower diabetes self-care adherence. How this occurs is unclear. Our systematic review explored the relationship between cognitive illness representations and poor emotional health and their combined association with diabetes self-care. METHODS Medline, Psycinfo, EMBASE, and CINAHL were searched from inception to June 2013. Data on associations between cognitive illness representations, poor emotional health, and diabetes self-care were extracted. Random effects meta-analysis was used to test the relationship between cognitive illness representations and poor emotional health. Their combined effect on diabetes self-care was narratively evaluated. RESULTS Nine cross-sectional studies were included. Increased timeline cyclical, consequences, and seriousness beliefs were associated with poorer emotional health symptoms. Lower perceived personal control was associated with increased depression and anxiety, but not mixed anxiety and depressive symptoms. Remaining cognitive illness representation domains had mixed statistically significant and non-significant relationships across emotional states or were measured only once. Effect sizes ranged from small to large (r=±0.20 to 0.51). Two studies explored the combined effects of cognitions and emotions on diabetes self-care. Both showed that cognitive illness representations have an independent effect on diabetes self-care, but only one study found that depression has an independent effect also. CONCLUSIONS Associations between cognitive illness representations and poor emotional health were in the expected direction - negative diabetes perceptions were associated with poorer emotional health. Few studies examined the relative effects of cognitions and emotions on diabetes self-care. Longitudinal studies are needed to clarify directional pathways.

Improving distress in dialysis (iDiD): a feasibility two-arm parallel randomised controlled trial of an online cognitive behavioural therapy intervention with and without therapist-led telephone support for psychological distress in patients undergoing haemodialysis.

Introduction Psychological distress is common in end-stage kidney disease (ESKD) and is associated with poorer health outcomes. Cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) is recommended in UK clinical guidelines for the management of depression in people with long-term conditions. Access to skilled therapists competent in managing the competing mental and physical health demands of ESKD is limited. Online CBT treatments tailored to the needs of the ESKD population offers a pragmatic solution for under-resourced services. This study examines the feasibility and acceptability of implementing a two-arm parallel randomised controlled trial of online CBT with (intervention arm) and without (control arm) therapist support to improve psychological distress in patients undergoing haemodialysis. Methods Patients will be screened for depression and anxiety while attending for their haemodialysis treatments. We aim to recruit 60 adult patients undergoing haemodialysis who meet criteria for mild to moderately severe symptoms of depression and/or anxiety. Patients will be randomised individually (using a 1:1 computerised sequence ratio) to either online CBT with therapist telephone support (intervention arm), or online CBT with no therapist (control arm). Outcomes include feasibility and acceptability descriptive data on rates of recruitment, randomisation, retention and treatment adherence. Self-report outcomes include measures of depression (Patient Health Questionnaire-9), anxiety (Generalised Anxiety Disorder-7), quality of life (Euro-QoL), service use (client service receipt inventory) and illness cognitions (brief illness perception questionnaire). A qualitative process evaluation will also be conducted. The statistician will be blinded to treatment allocation. Ethics and dissemination A National Health Service (NHS) research ethics committee approved the study. Data from this study will provide essential information for the design and testing of further interventions to ameliorate distress in patients undergoing dialysis. Any amendments to the protocol will be submitted to the NHS committee and study sponsor. Trial registration number NCT023528702; Pre-results.

Does collaborative care improve social functioning in adults with depression? The application of the WHO ICF framework and meta-analysis of outcomes.

BACKGROUND Collaborative care has proven efficacy in improving symptoms of depression, yet patients value improvements in their social function also. We used the World Health Organisations International classification of functioning, disability, and health (WHO ICF) to robustly identify measures of social function and explored whether collaborative care interventions improve social functioning using meta-analysis. METHODS We performed a secondary data analysis on studies identified from our previous Cochrane review of collaborative care interventions for depression and search update (December 2013). The WHO ICF framework was applied to identify studies that included self-report measures of social functioning. Outcomes were extracted at short-term (6 months) and medium-term (≥7 months) and analysed using random-effects meta-analysis. The relationship between improvements in depression outcomes and improvements in social functioning was also explored using bivarable meta-regression. RESULTS Eighteen trials were identified that measured social functioning and met our remaining inclusion criteria. Collaborative care was associated with small improvements in social functioning in the short (Standardised Mean Difference, SMD=0.23, 95% confidence interval 0.12 to 0.34) and medium term (SMD=0.19, 95% confidence interval 0.09 to 0.29). Improvements in depressive symptoms were associated with moderate improvements in social function (ß=-0.55, 95% confidence interval -0.82 to -0.28) but cross-sectionally only. LIMITATIONS The small number of studies (N=18) prevented more complex analyses to explore moderators of social functioning outcomes. CONCLUSIONS Collaborative care improves social functioning but the mechanisms through which this occurs are unknown. Future depression interventions need to consider a persons degree of social function equally alongside their depressive symptoms.

Examining the efficacy of social-psychological interventions for the management of fatigue in end-stage kidney disease (ESKD): a systematic review with meta-analysis

ABSTRACT Fatigue affects between 42% and 89% of end-stage kidney disease (ESKD) patients, with significant repercussions on quality of life and clinical outcomes. Fatigue management revolves around pharmacotherapy or exercise, which have only modest and short-term improvements. The aim of this systematic review was to investigate whether social-psychological interventions are effective at reducing fatigue in ESKD. Databases were searched to identify randomized controlled trials (RCTs) and quasi-RCTs that determined the effect of social-psychological interventions on fatigue (primary or secondary outcome), in the renal patient population. A meta-analysis was conducted. Sixteen RCTs (N = 1536) were included, predominantly among dialysis patients. Fatigue was a primary outcome in only two studies. The meta-analytic findings showed a significant improvement in fatigue following social-psychological interventions (standardised mean difference, SMD = 0.37, p = .001; 95% CI 0.15 to 0.59, I² = 69.1%, p < .001). There was evidence for greater effectiveness of interventions including stress-management/relaxation techniques, evaluated among fatigued samples meeting diagnostic thresholds, against passive/non-active comparison groups. The studies were generally of poor quality, with high heterogeneity, particularly with the number of sessions ranging from 2 to 96. Development and evaluation of a fatigue-specific social-psychological intervention is warranted in this setting.

Psychological Distress in Physical Long-Term Conditions

Psychological distress including depression, anxiety, and disease specific distress is common in people with physical long-term conditions (LTCs). This chapter focusses on psychological distress in four LTCs associated with the cardiovascular and endocrine systems, specifically: coronary heart disease (CHD), cerebrovascular disease (CVD), end-stage renal disease (ESRD), and diabetes. The co-occurrence of psychological distress alongside each of these LTCs is associated with increased morbidity, mortality, poorer quality of life, and higher health care costs. Underlying mechanisms as to why psychological distress is associated with poorer physical health outcomes remain unclear, but there is evidence implicating both biological and behavioural mechanisms. Such uncertainty generates difficulties for the development of effective treatment interventions for the management of psychological distress in the context of physical illness. In addition, it is likely that the mechanisms underlying the association between psychological distress and health outcomes are LTC specific. This chapter provides a brief overview of: (i) the conceptualisation and prevalence of psychological distress in LTCs, (ii) the aetiology of psychological distress in LTCs and its proposed mechanisms of action for contributing to poorer physical health outcomes, and (iii) existing treatment interventions for the management of psychological distress in people with LTCs.

Screening for psychological distress using the Patient Health Questionnaire Anxiety and Depression Scale (PHQ-ADS): Initial validation of structural validity in dialysis patients

OBJECTIVE To validate the factor structure of the Patient Health Questionnaire Anxiety and Depression Scale (PHQ-ADS)- which is a composite measure of depression and anxiety using the Patient Health Questionnaire-9 and Generalised Anxiety Disorder Scale (GAD-7), in a sample of haemodialysis patients. METHOD Screening data (n=182) used to select entry into a feasibility study of an online cognitive-behavioural therapy intervention for distress in dialysis patients were analysed here. Structural validity of the PHQ-ADS was evaluated using confirmatory factor analysis (CFA), assessing alternative models including a bi-factor model. In the bi-factor model all items from the PHQ-9 and GAD-7 (16-items in total) were loaded onto a general distress factor. Respective items of the PHQ-9 and GAD-7 were specified as subgroup factors. Omega-hierarchical was calculated to indicate the level of saturation of a multidimensional scale by a general factor. Construct validity was determined against the Brief Illness Perception Questionnaire. RESULTS A bi-factor PHQ-ADS model had good fit to the data (chi-square=96.1, p=0.26, CFI=0.99; TLI=0.99; RMSEA=0.02). The general distress factor accounted for approximately 84% of the explained variance (omega-h=0.90). Distress scores were significantly higher in females compare with males. There was a significant association between distress and negative illness perceptions (r=0.58, p<0.01). CONCLUSIONS The PHQ-ADS appears to have good structural validity in haemodialysis patients and is sufficiently unidimensional to warrant the use of a total distress score. A full psychometric analysis of the PHQ-ADS in a larger sample of dialysis patients is warranted.

Tailored online cognitive behavioural therapy with or without therapist support calls to target psychological distress in adults receiving haemodialysis: a feasibility randomised controlled trial

BACKGROUND Psychological distress is prevalent in haemodialysis (HD) patients yet access to psychotherapy remains limited. This study assessed the feasibility and acceptability of online cognitive-behavioural therapy (CBT) tailored for HD patients, with or without therapist support, for managing psychological distress. METHODS This feasibility randomised controlled trial recruited patients from a UK HD centre. Following psychological distress screens, patients with mild-moderate psychological distress (Patient Health Questionnaire PHQ-9; score: 5-19 and/or Generalised Anxiety Disorder; GAD-7 score: 5-14) who met remaining inclusion criteria were approached for consent. Consenters were individually randomised (1:1) to online-CBT or online-CBT plus three therapist support calls. Outcomes included recruitment, retention, and adherence rates. Exploratory change analyses were performed for: psychological distress, quality of life (QoL), illness perceptions, and costs. The statistician was blinded to allocation. RESULTS 182 (44%) out of 410 patients approached completed psychological distress screens. 26% found screening unacceptable; a further 30% found it unfeasible. Psychological distress was detected in 101 (55%) patients, 60 of these met remaining inclusion criteria. The primary reason for ineligibility was poor computer literacy (N=17, 53%). Twenty-five patients were randomised to the supported (N=18) or unsupported arm (N=7); 92% were retained at follow-up. No differences in psychological distress or cost-effectiveness were observed. No trial adverse events occurred. CONCLUSION Online CBT appears feasible but only for computer literate patients who identify with the label psychological distress. A definitive trial using the current methods for psychological distress screening and online care delivery is unfeasible. ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT02352870.

What are the combined effects of negative emotions and illness cognitions on self-care in people with type 2 diabetes? A longitudinal structural equation model

Objective: To explore whether negative emotions mediate the effect of diabetes cognitions on diabetes self-care and conversely whether diabetes cognitions mediate the effect of negative emotions on diabetes self-care. Design: Longitudinal observational study in adults with type 2 diabetes. Main outcome measures: Self-reported depression and anxiety (Diabetes Wellbeing Questionnaire), cognitions (Illness Perceptions Questionnaire-Revised; Beliefs about Medicines Questionnaire), and diabetes self-care (Summary of Diabetes Self-Care Activities Scale) were completed at baseline and six months. Analyses used structural equation modelling. Results: Baseline medication concerns were associated with elevated symptoms of depression and anxiety at follow-up, but emotions did not mediate medication concern’s effect on diabetes self-care. Baseline depression and anxiety symptoms were associated with specific diabetes cognitions over time, but these cognition domains did not mediate emotion’s effect on diabetes self-care. Personal control remained independent of emotions and was associated with diabetes self-care over time. Conclusions: Negative emotions did not act directly or alongside cognitions to influence diabetes self-care. The reciprocal relationship between diabetes cognitions and emotions suggests cognitive restructuring, in addition to other mood management intervention techniques would likely improve the emotional wellbeing of adults with type 2 diabetes. Likewise, personal control beliefs are likely important intervention targets for improving self-care.