However, the side effects of drugs, especially in older adults, and the less-than-universal effectiveness of current therapies prompt the continued search for alternate safe treatment interventions. Numerous research studies report the use of psychotherapeutic approaches and compare them to medical therapies. (Mcfarland, 2005)

Medical treatments have been assessed through various studies. Mcfarland, reports on studies on cognitive behavioral therapy. Research was conducted in hopes that there would be a significant change in coping ability, and significant changes in the older adult's feelings. Cognitive behavior of 102 elderly outpatients with mild to moderate depression is compared. The patients were randomly assigned to one of three groups: 1) desipramine alone, 2) cognitive behavioral therapy alone, or 3) desipramine plus cognitive behavioral therapy for 16-20 therapy sessions. Research results show that the groups that received desipramine plus cognitive behavioral therapy showed greater improvement than the groups taking medication alone, whereas the group receiving...
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