Table 3.
Descriptive statistics for the identified subgroups
| Variables | Entire sample of patients with values for M* (n = 50) |
Subgroup likely to benefit more from ESC/CM than from CBASP (n = 28) |
Subgroup likely to benefit more from CBASP than from ESC/CM (n = 22) |
Difference between subgroups with 95% CI and p-value |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Baseline variables which were included in the compilation of M* | ||||
| Female gender (%) | 50.0 | 60.7 | 36.4 | 24.4 (−2.7; 51.4); p = 0.2 |
| Age in years (mean (SD)) | 42.9 (1.08) | 40.2 (10.8) | 46.4 (9.9) | −6.2 (−12.2; −0.2); p = 0.04 |
| Early illness onset (%) | 58.0 | 42.9 | 77.3 | −34.4 (−59.8; −9.1); p = 0.02 |
| Number of previous suicide attempts (mean (SD)) | 0.3 (0.7) | 0.50 (0.8) | 0.1 (0.4) | 0.4 (0.03; 0.8); p = 0.03 |
| Childhood trauma (%)a | 70.0 | 82.1 | 54.5 | 27.6 (2.4; 52.8); p = 0.06 |
| Number of adverse life events (mean (SD)) | 1.8 (1.1) | 2.1 (1.2) | 1.4 (0.8) | 0.7 (0.1; 1.4); p = 0.02 |
| Proportion of patients with following frequency of previous treatments with AD (%) | ||||
| n = 0 | 44.0 | 46.4 | 40.9 |
Difference in chances of having ≥ 1 previous treatment with AD: −5.5 (−33.1; 22.1); p = 0.8 |
| n = 1 | 20.0 | 25.0 | 13.6 | |
| n = 2 | 8.0 | 7.1 | 9.1 | |
| n = 3 | 18.0 | 17.9 | 18.2 | |
| n = 4 | 4.0 | 3.6 | 4.6 | |
| n ≥ 5 | 6.0 | 0.0 | 13.6 | |
| Further variables which were not included in the compilation of M* | ||||
| MADRS baseline score (mean (SD)) | 26.6 (8.6) | 28.4 (8.1) | 24.4 (8.8) | 4.1 (−0.8; 8.9); p = 0.10 |
| Diagnosis of ≥ 1 comorbid Axis-I disorder (%)b | 48.0 | 57.1 | 36.4 | 20.8 (−6.4; 48.0); p = 0.2 |
| Diagnosis of ≥ 1 comorbid Axis-II disorder (%)c | 38.0 | 39.3 | 36.4 | 2.9 (−24.1; 30.0); p = 1.00 |
| History of ≥ 1 suicide attempt (%) | 22.0 | 35.7 | 4.5 | 31.2 (11.4; 50.9); p = 0.01 |
| Emotional abuse (%)d | 38.0 | 39.3 | 36.4 | 2.9 (−24.1; 30.0); p = 1.00 |
| Physical abuse (%)d | 12.0 | 14.3 | 9.1 | 5.2 (−12.5; 22.9); p = 0.7 |
| Sexual abuse (%)d | 10.0 | 14.3 | 4.5 | 9.7 (−5.9; 25.3); p = 0.4 |
| Emotional neglect (%)d | 56.0 | 57.1 | 54.5 | 2.6 (−25.1; 30.0); p = 1.00 |
| Physical neglect (%)d | 34.0 | 35.7 | 31.8 | 3.9 (−22.4; 30.2); p = 1.00 |
| Proportion of patients with following frequency of previous psychotherapeutic treatments (%) | ||||
| n = 0 | 30.0 | 32.1 | 27.3 |
Difference in chances of having ≥ 1 previous psychotherapy: −4.9 (−30.3; 20.5); p = 0.8 |
| n = 1 | 24.0 | 28.6 | 18.2 | |
| n = 2 | 20.0 | 17.9 | 22.7 | |
| n = 3 | 10.0 | 10.7 | 9.1 | |
| n = 4 | 6.0 | 7.1 | 4.6 | |
| n ≥ 5 | 10.0 | 3.6 | 18.2 | |
| Response at week eight (%) | 20.0 | 25.0 | 13.6 | 11.4 (−10.2; 32.9); p = 0.5 |
| Remission at week eight (%) | 12.0 | 14.3 | 9.1 | 5.2 (−12.5; 22.9); p = 0.7 |
Note: For nominal and ordinal variables, p-values and 95% CIs from the Fisher’s exact tests are reported. For metric variables, p-values and 95% CIs from independent sample t-tests are reported
aPresence indicates a clinical severity of at least moderate-to-severe on at least one dimension of the CTQ
bPrevalences (%) for comorbid Axis-I disorders were as follows: Alcohol abuse: 10.0; Substance abuse: 4.0; Panic disorder: 4.0; Panic disorder with agoraphobia: 8.0; Social phobia: 30.0 (46.7 CBASP benefit); Specific phobia: 10.0; Generalized anxiety disorder: 2.0; Bulimia nervosa: 2.0; Binge eating disorder: 4.0; all other Axis-I disorders: 0.0
cPrevalences (%) for comorbid Axis-II disorders were as follows: Self-insecure personality disorder: 26.0 (38.5 CBASP benefit); Obsessive–compulsive personality disorder: 12.0; Depressive personality disorder: 4.0; Paranoid personality disorder: 4.0; all other Axis-II disorders: 0.0
dPresence indicates a clinical severity of at least moderate-to-severe on the respective dimension of the CTQ
Abbreviations: AD, antidepressants; CBASP, Cognitive Behavioral Analysis System of Psychotherapy; CI, confidence interval; CTQ, Childhood Trauma Questionnaire [47]; ESC/CM, escitalopram plus clinical management; MADRS, Montgomery-Asberg Depression Rating Scale [48]; SD, standard deviation