Combining medication and psychosocial treatments: an evidence-based medicine approach

In a perfectly evidence-based world, selecting an appropriate treatment regimen for the anxious child from among the many possible options would be reasonably straightforward. In the complex world of clinical practice, choices are rarely so clear-cut. Many experts recommend the combination of medication and psychosocial treatment as offering the best chance of normalization. Despite a lack of supporting evidence, valid reasons for combining treatment include the presence of comorbidity and the propensity of single treatments to yield partial response. Within the conceptual framework of evidence-based medicine (EBM), this article provides a conceptual framework for how to combine drug and psychosocial treatments at the level of the individual patient.