Brief Psychosocial–Behavioral Intervention With Antidepressant Reduces Poststroke Depression Significantly More Than Usual Care With Antidepressant

Background and Purpose— Depression after stroke is prevalent, diminishing recovery and quality of life. Brief behavioral intervention, adjunctive to antidepressant therapy, has not been well evaluated for long-term efficacy in those with poststroke depression.Methods— One hundred one clinically depressed patients with ischemic stroke within 4 months of index stroke were randomly assigned to an 8-week brief psychosocial–behavioral intervention plus antidepressant or usual care, including antidepressant. The primary end point was reduction in depressive symptom severity at 12 months after entry.Results— Hamilton Rating Scale for Depression raw score in the intervention group was significantly lower immediately posttreatment (P <0.001) and at 12 months (P =0.05) compared with control subjects. Remission (Hamilton Rating Scale for Depression <10) was significantly greater immediately posttreatment and at 12 months in the intervention group compared with the usual care control. The mean percent decrease (47%±26% intervention versus 32%±36% control,P =0.02) and the mean absolute decrease (−9.2±5.7 intervention versus −6.2±6.4 control,P =0.023) in Hamilton Rating Scale for Depression at 12 months were clinically important and statistically significant in the intervention group compared with control.Conclusion— A brief psychosocial–behavioral intervention is highly effective in reducing depression in both the short and long term.