Trial reportBehaviour research and therapy2013
A randomized clinical trial of Behavioral Activation (BA) therapy for improving psychological and physical health in dementia caregivers: results of the Pleasant Events Program (PEP).
Trial report in Behaviour research and therapy, 2013. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. It is linked to 2 registered trials, which are not on this map. Cited by 38 papers, 6 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Reducing CVD Risk in Caregivers: A Brief Behavioral Activation Intervention
Integrative Therapeutic Programme to Regulate Expressed Emotions Among Informal Caregivers of People With Dementia: a Pilot Randomized Controlled Trial
Who cites it
38 citing papers in PubMed, 6 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 130 citations in OpenAlex.
- The Impact of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy on Peripheral Interleukin-6 Levels in Depression: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.Frontiers in psychiatry · 2022Pooled it
- Psychosocial interventions to support the mental health of informal caregivers of persons living with dementia - a systematic literature review.BMC geriatrics · 2021Pooled it
- Psychosocial Interventions and Immune System Function: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis of Randomized Clinical Trials.JAMA psychiatry · 2020Pooled it
- A systematic review of interventions for family caregivers who care for patients with advanced cancer at home.Patient education and counseling · 2020Pooled it
- A Systematic Review of Home-Setting Psychoeducation Interventions for Behavioral Changes in Dementia: Some Lessons for the COVID-19 Pandemic and Post-Pandemic Assistance.Frontiers in psychiatry · 2020Pooled it
- Factors associated with the risk of cardiovascular disease in family caregivers of people with dementia: a systematic review.The Journal of international medical research · 2020Pooled it
- Positive affect treatment targets reward sensitivity: A randomized controlled trial.Journal of consulting and clinical psychology · 2023Trial
- Effects of Psychosocial Interventions and Caregiving Stress on Cardiovascular Biomarkers in Family Dementia Caregivers: The UCSD Pleasant Events Program (PEP) Randomized Controlled Trial.The journals of gerontology. Series A, Biological sciences and medical sciences · 2020Trial
- Examining Positive and Negative Affect as Outcomes and Moderators of Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy and Acceptance and Commitment Therapy for Social Anxiety Disorder.Behavior therapy · 2019Trial
- Refining caregiver vulnerability for clinical practice: determinants of self-rated health in spousal dementia caregivers.BMC geriatrics · 2019Trial
- Behavioral activation for smoking cessation and mood management following a cardiac event: results of a pilot randomized controlled trial.BMC public health · 2017Trial
- Behavioral activation for dementia caregivers: scheduling pleasant events and enhancing communications.Clinical interventions in aging · 2015Trial
- Talking therapies for anxiety and depression in people affected by dementia: A scoping meta-review.Psychology and psychotherapy · 2026Article
- [Video-Based Online Metta-Meditation Therapy for Depression: A Pilot Trial Evaluating the Acceptability and Feasibility].Verhaltenstherapie · 2024Article
- Changes in positive and negative affect in psychotherapy for depression and anxiety.Journal of consulting and clinical psychology · 2024Article
- What works to support carers of older people and older carers? an international evidence map of interventions and outcomes.BMC geriatrics · 2024Review
- Association of dementia comorbidities with caregivers' physical, psychological, social, and financial burden.BMC geriatrics · 2023Article
- Amplification of Positivity Therapy for Co-occurring Alcohol Use Disorder with Depression and Anxiety Symptoms: Pilot Feasibility Study and Case Series.Behavior modification · 2022Article
- Depression among caregivers of patients with dementia: Associative factors and management approaches.World journal of psychiatry · 2022Review
- Anhedonia in Posttraumatic Stress Disorder: Prevalence, Phenotypes, and Neural Circuitry.Current topics in behavioral neurosciences · 2022Review
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
10 authors at 3 institutions in 2 countries.
Funding
Abstract
Dementia caregiving is associated with elevations in depressive symptoms and increased risk for cardiovascular diseases (CVD). This study evaluated the efficacy of the Pleasant Events Program (PEP), a 6-week Behavioral Activation intervention designed to reduce CVD risk and depressive symptoms in caregivers. One hundred dementia family caregivers were randomized to either the 6-week PEP intervention (N = 49) or a time-equivalent Information-Support (IS) control condition (N = 51). Assessments were completed pre- and post-intervention and at 1-year follow-up. Biological assessments included CVD risk markers Interleukin-6 (IL-6) and D-dimer. Psychosocial outcomes included depressive symptoms, positive affect, and negative affect. Participants receiving the PEP intervention had significantly greater reductions in IL-6 (p = .040), depressive symptoms (p = .039), and negative affect (p = .021) from pre- to post-treatment. For IL-6, clinically significant improvement was observed in 20.0% of PEP participants and 6.5% of IS participants. For depressive symptoms, clinically significant improvement was found for 32.7% of PEP vs 11.8% of IS participants. Group differences in change from baseline to 1-year follow-up were non-significant for all outcomes. The PEP program decreased depression and improved a measure of physiological health in older dementia caregivers. Future research should examine the efficacy of PEP for improving other CVD biomarkers and seek to sustain the intervention's effects.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.