Non‐pharmacological interventions for adults with intellectual disabilities and depression: a systematic review |
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| Authors: | P. C. M. Hamers D. A. M. Festen H. Hermans |
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| Affiliation: | 1. Intellectual Disability Medicine, Department of General Practice, Erasmus University Medical Center, Rotterdam, The Netherlands;2. Amarant Group, Healthcare Organization for People with Intellectual Disabilities, Tilburg, The Netherlands |
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| Abstract: | Background Although high rates of depression symptoms are reported in adults with intellectual disabilities (IDs), there is a lack of knowledge about non‐pharmacological treatment options for depression in this population. The first research question of this paper is: Which non‐pharmacological interventions have been studied in adults with ID and depression? The second research question is: What were the results of these non‐pharmacological interventions? Method Systematic review of the literature with an electronic search in six databases has been completed with hand searches. Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta‐analyses guidelines have been followed. Selected studies met predefined inclusion criteria. Results Literature search resulted in 4267 papers of which 15 met the inclusion criteria. Five different types of non‐pharmacological interventions have been studied: cognitive behavioural therapy, behavioural therapy, exercise intervention, social problem‐solving skills programme and bright light therapy. Conclusion There are only a few studies of good quality evaluating non‐pharmacological interventions for adults with ID and depression. Some of these studies, especially studies on cognitive behavioural therapy, show good results in decreasing depressive symptoms. High‐quality randomised controlled trials evaluating non‐pharmacological interventions with follow‐up are needed. |
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| Keywords: | depression intellectual disabilities non‐pharmacological interventions systematic review |
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