EMDR v. other psychological therapies for PTSD: a systematic review and individual participant data meta-analysis
Year: 2024
Type: review
Study designs: Systematic Review, Meta-Analysis
Abstract: BACKGROUND: This systematic review and individual participant data meta-analysis (IPDMA) examined the overall effectiveness of eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR) in reducing posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms, achieving response and remission, and reducing treatment dropout among adults with PTSD compared to other psychological treatments. Additionally, we examined available participant-level moderators of the efficacy of EMDR. METHODS: This study included randomized controlled trials. Eligible studies were identified by a systematic search in PubMed, Embase, PsyclNFO, PTSDpubs, and CENTRAL. The target population was adults with above-threshold baseline PTSD symptoms. Trials were eligible if at least 70% of study participants had been diagnosed with PTSD using a structured clinical interview. Primary outcomes included PTSD symptom severity, treatment response, and PTSD remission. Treatment dropout was a secondary outcome. The systematic search retrieved 15 eligible randomized controlled trials (RCTs); 8 of these 15 were able to be included in this IPDMA (346 patients). Comparator treatments included relaxation therapy, emotional freedom technique, trauma-focused cognitive behavioral psychotherapies, and REM-desensitization. RESULTS: = -0.25). Moderator analyses found unemployed participants receiving EMDR had higher PTSD symptom severity at the post-test, and males were more likely to drop out of EMDR treatment than females. CONCLUSION: The current study found no significant difference between EMDR and other psychological treatments. We found some indication of the moderating effects of gender and employment status.
Source: Psychological Medicine
Authors: Simonne Lesley Wright, Eirini Karyotaki, Pim Cuijpers, Jonathan Bisson, Davide Papola, Anke Witteveen, Sharain Suliman, Georgina Spies, Khodabakhsh Ahmadi, Liuva Capezzani, Sara Carletto, Thanos Karatzias, Claire Kullack, Jonathan Laugharne, Christopher William Lee, Mirjam J. Nijdam, Miranda Olff, Luca Ostacoli, Soraya Seedat, Marit Sijbrandij
Institutions: Stellenbosch University, Amsterdam Public Health, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, Cardiff University, University of Verona, Baqiyatallah University of Medical Sciences, University of Turin, Edinburgh Napier University, The University of Western Australia, Amsterdam UMC Location University of Amsterdam, Arq Psychotrauma Expert Group, Amsterdam University Medical Centers, University of Amsterdam, South African Medical Research Council
Language: English
Subfield: Clinical Psychology
Field: Psychology
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: green
OpenAlex ID: W4390595347