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Light therapy for non-seasonal depression: systematic review and meta-analysis

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  02 January 2018

Stefan Perera ,
Rebecca Eisen ,
Meha Bhatt ,
Neera Bhatnagar ,
Russell de Souza ,
Lehana Thabane  and
Zainab Samaan
Stefan Perera*
Affiliation:
Department of Clinical Epidemiology and Biostatistics, McMaster University, Hamilton, Canada
Rebecca Eisen
Affiliation:
MiNDS Neuroscience Graduate Program, McMaster University, Hamilton, Canada
Meha Bhatt
Affiliation:
Department of Clinical Epidemiology and Biostatistics, McMaster University, Hamilton, Canada
Neera Bhatnagar
Affiliation:
Health Sciences Library, McMaster University, Hamilton, Canada
Russell de Souza
Affiliation:
Department of Clinical Epidemiology and Biostatistics, McMaster University, Hamilton, Canada Population Genomics Program, Chanchlani Research Centre, McMaster University, Hamilton, Canada
Lehana Thabane
Affiliation:
McMaster University, Hamilton, Canada Biostatistics Unit, Centre for Evaluation of Medicine, Hamilton, Canada
Zainab Samaan
Affiliation:
Department of Clinical Epidemiology and Biostatistics, McMaster University, Hamilton, Canada Biostatistics Unit, Centre for Evaluation of Medicine, Hamilton, Canada Department of Psychiatry and Behavioural Neurosciences, McMaster University, Hamilton, Canada
*
Zainab Samaan, Associate Professor, Mood Disorders Program, Centre for Mountain Health, 100 West 5th Street, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada L8N 3K7. Email: samaanz@mcmaster.ca
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Abstract

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Background

Light therapy is a known treatment for patients with seasonal affective disorder. However, the efficacy of light therapy in treating patients with non-seasonal depression remains inconclusive.

Aims

To provide the current state of evidence for efficacy of light therapy in non-seasonal depressive disorders.

Method

Systematic review of randomised controlled trials (RCTs) was conducted by searching MEDLINE, EMBASE, PsycINFO, CINAHL, and CENTRAL from their inception to September 2015. Study selection, data abstraction and risk of bias assessment were independently conducted in duplicate. Meta-analyses were performed to provide a summary statistic for the included RCTs. The reporting of this systematic review follows the PRISMA guidelines.

Results

A meta-analysis including 881 participants from 20 RCTs demonstrated a beneficial effect of light therapy in non-seasonal depression (standardised mean difference in depression score −0.41 (95% CI −0.64 to −0.18)). This estimate was associated with significant heterogeneity (I2=60%, P=0.0003) that was not sufficiently explained by subgroup analyses. There was also high risk of bias in the included trials limiting the study interpretation.

Conclusions

The overall quality of evidence is poor due to high risk of bias and inconsistency. However, considering that light therapy has minimal side-effects and our meta-analysis demonstrated that a significant proportion of patients achieved a clinically significant response, light therapy may be effective for patients with non-seasonal depression and can be a helpful additional therapeutic intervention for depression.

Type
Review
Information
BJPsych Open , Volume 2 , Issue 2 , March 2016 , pp. 116 - 126
Creative Commons
Creative Common License - CCCreative Common License - BYCreative Common License - NCCreative Common License - ND
This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Non-Commercial, No Derivatives (CC BY-NC-ND) licence (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/).
Copyright
Copyright © The Royal College of Psychiatrists 2016

Footnotes

Declaration of interest

None.

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