The effects of combining art psychotherapy with pharmacotherapy in treating major depressive disorder: Randomized control study

•RCT in art psychotherapy combined with pharmacotherapy for adults with MDD.•With adherence to pharmacotherapy, six weeks of art psychotherapy produced significantly better results than pharmacotherapy alone in adults with MDD.•Significantly positive improvements were found for depressive symptoms, anxiety, interpersonal relationships, and self-esteem as a result of the combined therapy. Retrospectively registered randomized controlled trial (RCT) study sought to investigate the effects of a six-week art psychotherapy in the treatment of 49 adult patients already receiving pharmacotherapy for major depressive disorder (MDD). To achieve this objective, the combined therapy’s primary effects on depressive symptoms, anxiety, interpersonal relationships, and self-esteem were examined, along with its secondary effects on drop-out rate, remission rate, and treatment satisfaction Results showed that the combined therapy was significantly more effective than pharmacotherapy alone in alleviating symptoms of depression (p < .05) and anxiety (p < .05), improving interpersonal relationships (p < .05), and increasing self-esteem (p < .05). However, no significant changes occurred in drop-out rate (p> .05), remission rate, and treatment satisfaction (p < .05). These findings also support the result of previous studies reporting on the efficacy of combined psychotherapy and pharmacotherapy in the treatment of MDD. However, no significant changes occurred in drop-out rate, remission rate, or treatment satisfaction. Based on these results, art psychotherapy is an effective integrative medicine to alleviate various symptoms of patients with MDD.