REVIEW article
Front. Psychiatry
Sec. Adolescent and Young Adult Psychiatry
Volume 16 - 2025 | doi: 10.3389/fpsyt.2025.1601073
Interventions for Adolescent Depression Comorbid with Non-Suicidal Self-Injury: A Scoping Review
Provisionally accepted
- 1School of Medicine, Tongji University, Shanghai, China
- 2Shanghai Pudong New Area Mental Health Center, School of Medicine, Tongji University, Shanghai, Shanghai Municipality, China
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Background: Adolescent depression and non-suicidal self-injury (NSSI) represent significant global public health challenges, with high comorbidity rates and multidimensional adverse outcomes. Despite growing evidence on interventions, a comprehensive synthesis of strategies targeting this co-occurrence remains limited.Aim: This scoping review systematically maps evidence-based interventions for adolescents with comorbid depression and NSSI, focusing on efficacy, mechanisms, and implementation challenges.Methods: Following Arksey and O'Malley's framework and PRISMA-ScR guidelines, a systematic search of English and Chinese databases identified 18 studies (13 randomized controlled trials [RCTs], 3 quasi-experimental studies, and 2 other study designs). Data were extracted and synthesized to characterize intervention types, outcomes, and contextual factors.Results: Psychotherapies, particularly dialectical behavior therapy for Adolescents (DBT-A), demonstrated robust efficacy, reducing NSSI frequency by 50% and relapse rates through enhanced emotion regulation. Family-system approaches (e.g., Satir therapy) improved family cohesion and reduced comorbid behaviors. Pharmacological agents (e.g., Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors) showed synergistic effects when combined with psychotherapy, while neuromodulation (e.g., Repetitive Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation) normalized neuroinflammatory markers. Innovations like narrative therapy facilitated identity reconstruction by externalizing NSSI as a separate entity from self-concept. Key challenges included cultural adaptability, limited long-term follow-up (≥1 year), and understudied digital intervention roles.Conclusions: Integrated biological-behavioral interventions, culturally tailored protocols, and family-system strategies are pivotal for managing NSSI-depression comorbidity. Future research should prioritize rigorous RCTs with extended follow-up periods, community-based implementation, and digital mental health solutions to address scalability and sustainability gaps.
Keywords: adolescent depression, Non-suicidal self-injury, Scoping review, Psychotherapy, Family Intervention, Combined therapy.Adolescent depression, dialectical behavior therapy, Familysystem intervention
Received: 27 Mar 2025; Accepted: 06 Jun 2025.
Copyright: © 2025 Fang, Bian, Zhang and Wang. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
* Correspondence: Yanbo Wang, School of Medicine, Tongji University, Shanghai, China
Disclaimer: All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.