Evidence map›Paper›PMID 40597886›Full record

Trial reportBMC psychiatry2025

Evaluating the efficacy of rumination-focused cognitive-behavioral therapy in alleviating depression, negative affect, and rumination among patients with recurrent major depressive disorder: a randomized, multicenter clinical trial.

Mohsen Hasani, Saeedeh Zenoozian, Reza Ahmadi, Sahel Khakpoor, Soleiman Saberi, Reza Pirzeh, Omid Saed

Abstract readRandomized Controlled TrialMulticenter Study
In one paragraph

Trial report in BMC psychiatry, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 4 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
4citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from 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.

2 · The registry

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.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

4 citing papers in PubMed.

  1. Trial
  2. Article
  3. Article
  4. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

7 authors.

Mohsen HasaniDepartment of Clinical Psychology, Faculty of Medicine, Zanjan University of Medical Sciences, Zanjan, Iran.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0003-1411-700X
Saeedeh ZenoozianDepartment of Clinical Psychology, Faculty of Medicine, Zanjan University of Medical Sciences, Zanjan, Iran.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0002-5469-9545
Reza AhmadiDepartment of Clinical Psychology, School of Medicine, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0001-5179-3280
Sahel KhakpoorDepartment of Clinical Psychology, Faculty of Medicine, University of Social Welfare and Rehabilitation Science: Tehran, Tehran, Iran.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0003-2536-3337
Soleiman SaberiDepartment of Clinical Psychology, Faculty of Medicine, Zanjan University of Medical Sciences, Zanjan, Iran.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0002-6399-0297
Reza PirzehDepartment of Psychiatry, Faculty of Medicine, Zanjan University of Medical Sciences, Zanjan, Iran.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0002-7304-1255
Omid SaedDepartment of Clinical Psychology, Faculty of Medicine, Zanjan University of Medical Sciences, Zanjan, Iran. o.saed@zums.ac.ir.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0002-6070-6203

Funding

Zanjan University of Medical Sciences A-11-924-9
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundRumination plays a pivotal role in the onset, recurrence, and persistence of residual symptoms in major depressive disorder (MDD), making it a critical therapeutic target in the development of novel interventions. Rumination-Focused Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy (RFCBT), an adapted form of cognitive-behavioral therapy specifically designed to address ruminative thinking patterns, has garnered increasing attention in clinical research. In light of these developments, the present study was conducted to evaluate the efficacy of RFCBT in reducing rumination severity, depressive symptoms, and negative affect among individuals with recurrent MDD.

methodsThis randomized clinical trial enrolled 44 university students diagnosed with MDD. Participants were randomly assigned in equal proportions to either the group-based Rumination-Focused Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy (g-RFCBT) condition or a waitlist (WL) control group. The g-RFCBT received 10 weekly group therapy sessions supplemented by two individual sessions (the initial session and the 12th session), while participants in the WL group received no intervention until the conclusion of the study. Assessments were conducted at four time points; pre-treatment, post-treatment, 2-month follow-up, and 6-month follow-up. Outcome measures included the Beck Depression Inventory-II (BDI-II), the Repetitive Thinking Questionnaire-31 (RTQ-31), and the Negative Affect subscale of the Positive and Negative Affect Schedule (PANAS-NA).

resultsRepeated measures ANOVA revealed statistically significant improvements in the g-RFCBT group compared to the WL group. Within-group analyses indicated that RFCBT led to a 65% reduction in depressive symptoms and a 30% reduction in both rumination and negative affect from baseline to post-treatment. Furthermore, the g-RFCBT exhibited significantly greater reduction in depression, rumination, and negative affect compared to the WL group, with treatment effects sustained through the 6-month follow-up period.

conclusionsGroup-based Rumination-Focused Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy (g-RFCBT) demonstrated significant efficacy in reducing the severity of depressive symptoms, rumination, and negative affect among individuals with major depressive disorder (MDD). Moreover, these therapeutic benefits were maintained over a 6-month follow-up period, suggesting durable treatment effects.

trial registrationThis randomized clinical trial, consisting of an intervention and a waitlist control condition, that was registered in the Iranian Registry of Clinical Trials (IRCT Id: IRCT20181117041676N1) (Registration Date: June 3, 2019).

Indexed as

AffectCognitive Behavioral TherapyMajor Depressive DisorderRumination, CognitiveAdultFemaleHumansMalePsychiatric Status Rating ScalesRecurrenceTreatment OutcomeYoung AdultDepressionNegative affectRuminationRumination-focused cognitive-behavioral therapy

Identifiers

PMID40597886
PMCPMC12211528

What OpenQuestion holds

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Registered trials

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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.