Treatment of minor depression.

Minor depression is one of the most common types of depressive disorders, but the benefit of depression-specific treatments for minor depression is less clear than for major depression. The authors reviewed the available evidence-base for the treatment of Minor Depression as conceptualized in DSM-IV or RDC, conducting a computer literature search to identify randomized treatment trials that included minor depression and a control condition, and identifying 10 studies meeting these criteria. Effect sizes, defined as difference in proportions, could be calculated for eight of the studies, and ranged from 0.46 to -0.08. There was no evidence that older persons were less responsive to treatment than younger persons. Few studies have been specifically designed to test treatments for minor depression. The studies are quite variable. Nonspecific treatment factors common to both depression treatments and to active control conditions appear potent and may be of benefit for persons with minor depression.