Objective: The positive effect of sport and exercise interventions in the treatment of Major Depressive Disorder (MDD) is well documented for aerobic exercise interventions while other kinds of exercise prescriptions have rarely been investigated. Therefore, Weigelt and colleagues provided recommendations for the sport and exercise therapy to treat MDD.
Methods: This study was conducted as a quasi-randomized evaluation study in a pre-test/post-test design to compare the effectiveness of two different interventions (single-handed aerobic exercise vs. combined sport and exercise approach) on psychiatric outcome parameters in a day clinic psychiatric setting. N=62 participants took part in the study and were quasirandomized to one of the two conditions. Affective, cognitive, psychosocial, and neuropsychological changes, were assessed by a battery of questionnaires before (t1) and after (t2) treatment. Accelerometers were used to assess kcal consumption.
Results: The results show similar treatment effects for both programs in the treatment of MDD.
Conclusion: These findings highlight the effectiveness of different physical activities in the treatment of MDD and provide further information for good clinical practice.
