Major depression: does gender influence the risk of recurrence? A systematic review

Background and Objectives: A woman's lifetime risk of major depression is almost twice as high as that of a man. Major depression is associated with a high risk of recurrence, but the question of a differential risk of recurrence between genders is unclear. Based on a systematic review of the literature, this paper attempts to answer the following question: "Following a major depressive episode, do women and men have the same risk of recurrence?". Methods: We prospectively collected all studies from the period 2005-2014 where the variable gender was considered a potential predictor of recurrence. The database has also been expanded with articles cited in the bibliography of the prospectively collected articles and with a PubMed Database search covering the period January 2005-August 2014. Results: Of the prospective studies (n = 98), most found no influence of gender on recurrence risk, but a minority, mostly large sample studies, found that female gender is a statistically significant risk factor for recurrence. Results suggest a probable female-to-male relative risk of recurrence between 1.0 and 1.2. Given the heterogeneity of the studies (length of follow-up, populations, nature of the studies, choice of dependant variables, statistical methods, and available data) no meta-analyses were performed. There are many interfering variables (age of onset, subchronic evolution, treatments, etc.) that can influence the results of prospective studies. Conclusions: Women probably have a slightly higher risk of recurrence after a major depressive episode than men. This increased risk is much smaller than women's much higher lifetime risk of depression.

Cognitive-behavioral group therapy for girls victims of sexual violence in Brazil: Are there differences in effectiveness when applied by different groups of psychologists?: effectiveness of group therapy for girls victims of sexual violence

The effectiveness of a cognitive-behavioral group therapy model for the treatment of girls victims of sexual violence (SV) was investigated when applied by different groups of practitioners: researchers/psychologists who developed it (G1) and psychologists from the public social care network trained by the first group (G2). A quasi-experimental study was carried out, in which the group therapy model was applied by the two groups. A total of 103 girls victims of sexual violence (SV), aged between seven and 16 years (M=11.76 years, SD=2.02 years) were included, with 49 attended by G1, and 54 by G2. The results indicated a significant reduction in the symptoms of depression, anxiety, stress, and PTSD. The comparison between the results obtained by the two groups of practitioners in the application of the model indicated no significant differences in the rates of improvement of the participants. These results indicate the effectiveness of the cognitive-behavioral group therapy model evaluated and the possibility of it being used as a care strategy by psychology practitioners working in public services.