Using interpersonal therapy (IPT) with older adults today and tomorrow: a review of the literature and new developments.

Interpersonal psychotherapy (IPT) has been shown to be an efficacious evidence-based treatment for major depression in combination with antidepressant medication, as a maintenance treatment in combination with medication, and as monotherapy (with placebo). After reviewing the salient features of IPT that make it a good fit for treating older patients, I summarize the extant literature. New adaptations of IPT for depressed older adults with cognitive impairment are delineated. An argument is articulated for why IPT may be the ideal psychotherapy for older patients.