Metacognitive therapy vs. eye movement desensitization and reprocessing for posttraumatic stress disorder: study...

Area of Science:

• Psychiatry
• Clinical Psychology

Background:

• Cognitive behavioural exposure therapy and EMDR are standard PTSD treatments, but 30-45% of patients show no improvement.
• Some patients with severe trauma avoid exposure therapy, necessitating alternative treatments.
• Metacognitive therapy (MCT) is a novel, exposure-free approach for PTSD.

Purpose of the Study:

• To compare the effectiveness of MCT with EMDR for chronic PTSD.
• To evaluate the comparative effectiveness and long-term stability of MCT versus EMDR.

Main Methods:

• A two-arm, parallel, randomized superiority trial.
• 100 patients with chronic PTSD received 12 sessions of either MCT or EMDR.
• Primary outcome: PTSD symptom severity (Posttraumatic Diagnostic Scale) at 3 months.

Main Results:

• Primary outcome data (PTSD symptom severity) collected at 3 months post-treatment.
• Secondary outcomes (anxiety, depression, metacognitive beliefs) assessed at 3 and 12 months.
• Study is the first to compare MCT and EMDR with 12-month follow-up.

Conclusions:

• The study will provide the first direct comparison of MCT and EMDR for PTSD.
• Findings will indicate the comparative effectiveness and durability of MCT versus EMDR.
• Results will inform clinical practice regarding non-exposure-based PTSD treatments.