Interoception in Psychiatric Disorders: A Review of Randomized, Controlled Trials with Interoception-Based...

Area of Science:

• Neuroscience
• Psychiatry
• Clinical Psychology

Background:

• Interoception, the sensing of internal bodily signals, is gaining research attention but lacks widespread clinical integration.
• Understanding interoception's role is crucial for advancing psychiatric treatment.
• Current clinical application of interoceptive principles remains limited.

Purpose of the Study:

• To review clinical treatment interventions incorporating interoception.
• To synthesize existing research on interoception in psychiatric disorders.
• To identify research gaps for future investigation.

Main Methods:

• Comprehensive literature search of randomized controlled trials.
• Focus on interventions including interoception for psychiatric disorders.
• Inclusion of studies measuring interoception via self-report.

Main Results:

• 14 randomized controlled trials were identified.
• 7 trials demonstrated effective symptom amelioration using interoception-based interventions.
• Positive outcomes were observed in anxiety, eating, psychosomatic, and addictive disorders.
• Clinical improvements correlated with changes in interoceptive measures, often symptom-specific.

Conclusions:

• Interoception may serve as a mechanism of action for improving psychiatric symptoms.
• A scarcity of studies uses general, symptom-independent interoceptive measures.
• More research is needed to elucidate interoception's role and standardize its measurement in psychiatric care.