Psychosocial intervention ups adherence to antidepressants

(HealthDay)—A psychosocial intervention can improve early adherence to antidepressants among middle-aged and older adults, according to a study published online Sept. 27 in JAMA Psychiatry.

Jo Anne Sirey, Ph.D., from Weill Cornell Medicine in White Plains, New York, and colleagues conducted a clinical effectiveness study involving patients (aged ≥55 years) who received newly initiated depression treatment by their primary care physician. Participants were recruited within 10 days of their prescription and were randomly assigned to the intervention (Treatment Initiation and Participation Program [TIP]; 115 participants), which included three 30-minute contacts scheduled during a six-week period just after prescription of the antidepressant, or treatment as usual (116 participants). Participants in the TIP group identified and addressed barriers to adherence before developing a personalized adherence strategy.

The researchers found that patients in the TIP group were more likely to be adherent at six weeks (odds ratio, 5.54) and at both six and 12 weeks (odds ratio, 3.27). A significant, 24.9 percent, earlier reduction in depressive symptoms was seen for participants in the TIP group. Participants who were 80 percent adherent at weeks six and 12 in both groups had a 15 percent greater improvement in depressive symptoms over the course of treatment relative to baseline (P = 0.051).

"The Treatment Initiation and Participation Program is an effective intervention to improve early adherence to pharmacotherapy," the authors write. "Improved adherence can promote improvement in depression."