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A critical overview of systematic reviews and meta-analyses of light therapy for non-seasonal depression.

Psychiatry research
August 1, 2022
Chengda Dong et al. (5 authors)
Journal ArticleReviewResearch Support, Non-U.S. Gov'tHuman Study
Study Details

Study Goal

The researchers aimed to summarize and evaluate the methodological and evidence quality of systematic reviews/meta-analyses on the effectiveness and safety of light therapy for non-seasonal depression.

Results Summary

Light therapy was found to be effective as a non-pharmacological intervention for non-seasonal depression, but the evidence and methodological quality of the included studies were generally unsatisfactory, requiring cautious interpretation of results.

Population

Individuals with non-seasonal depression.

Effective Dosage

Not specified

Duration

Not specified

Interactions

None mentioned

Extracted Claims (2)
InterventionDirectionEndpointPopulationDosageImpactClaim #
light therapy
decrease
non-seasonal depression
-
-
increasingly been used in relieving
#1
light therapy
decrease
non-seasonal depression
-
-
is effective as a non-pharmacological intervention for the treatment of
#2
Abstract

Light therapy has increasingly been used in relieving non-seasonal depression. We aimed to summarize the evidence and evaluate the methodological quality regarding the effectiveness and safety of light therapy for non-seasonal depression from systematic reviews/meta-analyses (SRs/MAs). In this study, five databases were searched from their inceptions to January 24, 2022. SRs/MAs on light therapy treatment for non-seasonal depression were included. Methodological quality assessment was performed using the Assessing the Methodological Quality of Systematic Reviews 2 (AMSTAR-2), and evidence quality assessment was performed using the Grades of Recommendation, Assessment, Development, and Evaluation (GRADE). Six SRs/MAs on light therapy treatment for non-seasonal depression were included. The AMSTAR-2 showed that the methodological level of five included SRs/MAs were evaluated as critically low quality, and one included SRs/MAs were rated as low quality. According to the evaluation results of GRADE, the quality of evidence was mostly unsatisfactory. The results and descriptions in the included SRs/MAs suggest that light therapy is effective as a non-pharmacological intervention for the treatment of non-seasonal depression. However, the generally unsatisfied evidence quality and methodological quality of the SRs/Mas indicate that these results must be interpreted with caution.

Medical Subject Headings (MeSH)
DepressionHumansPhototherapySystematic Reviews as Topic
Study Links
Quality Scores
SafetyNot Assessed
Efficacy65/10
Quality40/10
Citation Metrics
Total Citations12
Citations/Year4.0
Relative Citation Ratio1.68
NIH Percentile69%
Research Impact Scores
APT Score0.75
Weight Score2.06
Normalized Score0.54
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