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Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) for Chronic Pain: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analyses
Laura S Hughes1, Jodi Clark, Janette A Colclough
1*Leeds CAMHS, Leeds Community Healthcare NHS Trust, Leeds †IAPT Adult Mental Health Services; Tees, Esk and Wear Valleys NHS Foundation Trust ‡The University of York §Department of Health Sciences and Hull York Medical School, The University of York, York, UK.
The Clinical Journal of Pain
|August 2, 2016
Summary
Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) shows promise for chronic pain management, improving psychological flexibility and functioning compared to usual care. However, effects on pain intensity and quality of life were not significant.
Area of Science:
- Psychology
- Behavioral Medicine
- Pain Management
Background:
- Chronic pain significantly impacts individuals and economies.
- Cognitive-behavior therapy (CBT) offers benefits but has limitations.
- Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) aims to enhance valued actions despite pain.
Purpose of the Study:
- To evaluate the clinical effectiveness of ACT for adult chronic pain.
- To compare ACT against control conditions and other active treatments.
Main Methods:
- Systematic review of eleven trials.
- Searches conducted in major databases (Cochrane, MEDLINE, EMBASE, CINAHL Plus, PsycINFO).
- Included grey literature, reference lists, and reverse citation searches.
Main Results:
- ACT demonstrated superiority over control conditions.
- Significant medium to large effect sizes for pain acceptance and psychological flexibility.
- Small to medium effect sizes for functioning, anxiety, and depression; no significant changes in pain intensity or quality of life.
Conclusions:
- ACT is clinically effective compared to controls for several chronic pain outcomes.
- Methodological limitations may have inflated effect sizes.
- Further robust trials are needed, especially comparing ACT to active treatments.
