Activity trails in the therapy of clinical depression: A randomized controlled equivalence trial

Objectives: Municipal activity trails may provide an attractive opportunity for the therapy of depressive patients and the chronically ill. Their effectivity in clinical settings, however, has not yet been studied. Methods: Patients (n = 45; 43 + 13 years) with clinically confirmed depression trained for the duration of their hospital stay on an activity trail or completed the standard physical therapy. Assignment was random. Prior to the subsequent intervention, the amount of depression (BDI-II), autonomous cardiac regulation ability (HRV), and health-related quality of life (SF36) were collected and analyzed for between-group differences using the 95 %-confidence intervals of the pre to post differences between groups. Results: Activity trail and standard therapy intervention showed at least equality for all outcomes assessed. Intervention-induced and clinically relevant improvements were found in BDI-II and in most scores of the SF-36, but not in the HRV. Conclusion: Activity trails represent an attractive and safe supplement to existing exercise programs in the rehabilitation of clinical depression.