An account is given of a multi-centre, controlled clinical trial of the comparative efficacy of lithium, amitriptyline and placebo in terms of the comparative relapse-rates over a three-year period among patients who had recovered from a depressive illness. The results indicate that while both the pharmacodynamically active drugs are more effective than placebo the differences between them are minimal.

A clinical trial was undertaken to assess the effectiveness of social work intervention with a group of depressed women attending their general practitioner for treatment. Social work treatment was ineffective for the group of women as a whole on changes in social scores, clinical ratings, or visits to the doctor. The results suggest, however, that social work help benefited those with ‘acute on chronic’ illness but had no effect on those with more acute conditions.

The 28-item General Health Questionnaire (GHQ) was found to be a valid and sensitive instrument for detecting emotional morbidity in patients attending a multiple sclerosis clinic.