Abstract
AIM: The present study assessed the benefits of cognitive behavioral treatment in patients suffering from major depressive disorders. METHODOLOGY: Hundred patients were included in the present study. The cases were assigned alternatively to the experimental group, who received cognitive behavior therapy in addition to the antidepressant medications, whereas in the control group, patients were managed using medications. Four outcome measures were used, viz., Beck Depression Inventory, Hamilton Depression Rating Scale, Beck Anxiety Inventory, and Visual Analog Scale. Chi-square test was used to analyze the data using SPSS. RESULTS: The highest number of subjects (55%) were found in the age group of 15-25 years. The mean Beck Depression Inventory score in the experimental group was 35.60 (standard deviation 9.52) and in the control group, it was 26.40 (standard deviation 8.26) giving a mean difference of 9.20 which is statistically significant. CONCLUSION: It was found that the patients who received cognitive behavior therapy reported greater improvement in their symptomatology than the patients who were receiving medications only.