Sandplay therapy could be a method to decrease disease activity and psychological stress in children with systemic...

Area of Science:

• Pediatrics
• Rheumatology
• Psychology

Background:

• Childhood-onset systemic lupus erythematosus (cSLE) presents unique challenges, including severe organ involvement and poor prognosis.
• cSLE significantly impacts children's mental health due to physiological, functional, and organ damage.
• There is a lack of psychological intervention research for cSLE in China.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the efficacy of Sandplay therapy on the mental health of children with cSLE.
• To assess the impact of Sandplay therapy on disease activity in pediatric patients with cSLE.

Main Methods:

• Forty children diagnosed with cSLE were randomly assigned to a control group (CG) or an intervention group (IG).
• The CG received standard drug therapy (glucocorticoid, immunosuppressant).
• The IG received Sandplay therapy in addition to standard drug therapy, with assessments at baseline and at 2, 4, and 12 weeks post-intervention.

Main Results:

• No significant differences were observed between groups at 0 and 2 weeks.
• At 12 weeks, the IG showed significantly lower scores on the Children's Depression Inventory (CDI-S) and Screen for Child Anxiety Related Emotional Disorders (SCARED) compared to the CG.
• The IG demonstrated improved social function, school performance, and emotional health (PedsQL 4.0), along with better clinical indicators (p < 0.05).

Conclusions:

• Sandplay therapy may mitigate anxiety and depression in children with cSLE.
• This therapeutic approach appears to reduce disease activity in pediatric lupus patients.
• Sandplay therapy offers a potential adjunctive treatment for improving the overall well-being of children with cSLE.