For mild depression, texting with a therapist works as well as video sessions, study finds

Texting or emailing with a therapist might provide more relief to people with depression than waiting for an appointment on video-based platforms.

That was the hypothesis researchers at the University of Washington used in a new study about the efficacy of messaged-based therapy compared to video-based therapy. MORE: Receiving gene therapy for hemophilia changed this South Jersey man's life

They were wrong.

Texting did not lead to better outcomes than video conferences with mental health professionals. But the study did show that message-based therapy can be as effective as video sessions.

For the study, published Thursday in JAMA Network Open, researchers divided 850 people into two groups randomly assigned to either 12 weeks of unlimited communication with a therapist via tex