Drugs and group psychotherapy in neurotic depression

Chronically depressed neurotic women outpatients were randomly assigned, after a 2 wk placebo washout period, to receive one of three medications (imipramine, diazepam, or placebo) and to attend either weekly group psychotherapy or biweekly brief supportive sessions at one of two clinics. Analyses of covariance for the first 16 wk of active treatment (N = 146) indicated a marked therapeutic advantage for imipramine. No advantage for group therapy was detected on these measures. Patients who showed improvement were continued in further controlled drug treatment for up to a total of 71 wk; preliminary analyses of this phase showed some continuing advantage for treatment with imipramine.