A CONTROLLED TRIAL OF LIGHT THERAPY FOR THE TREATMENT OF PEDIATRIC SEASONAL AFFECTIVE-DISORDER

Objective: To evaluate the efficacy of light therapy for the treatment of pediatric seasonal affective disorder (SAD). Method: 28 children ( aged 7 to 17 years) at two geographically distinct sites were enrolled in a double-blind, placebo-controlled, crossover trial of bright-ligh t treatment. Subjects initially entered a week-long baseline period du ring which they wore dark glasses for an hour a day. They were then ra ndomly assigned to receive either active treatment (1 hour of bright-l ight therapy plus 2 hours of dawn simulation) or placebo (1 hour of cl ear goggles plus 5 minutes of low-intensity dawn simulation) for 1 wee k. The treatment phase was followed by a second dark-glasses phase las ting 1 to 2 weeks. After this phase, the children received the alterna te treatment. Response was measured using the parent and child version s of the Structured Interview Guide for the Hamilton Depression Rating Scale, Seasonal Affective Disorders version (SIGH-SAD). Results: Data were analyzed as change from baseline. SIGH-SAD-P total depression sc ores were significantly decreased from baseline during light therapy c ompared with placebo (one-way analysis of variance, p = .009), and no differences were found between the placebo and control phases. Subscor es of atypical and typical depression were also significantly decrease d during the active treatment (p = .004 and .028, respectively). A sim ilar trend was noted with the SIGH-SAD-C, but this did not reach signi ficance. At the end of the study, 78% of the parents questioned and 80 % of the children questioned rated light therapy as the phase during w hich the child ''felt best.'' Conclusion: Light therapy appears to be an effective treatment for pediatric SAD.