A Systematic Review of Related Literature in Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy Intervention - Book Report/Review Example

?A Systematic Review of Related Literature in Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy Intervention Article Protocol for a randomised controlled trial of risk screening and early intervention comparing child and family-focused cognitive-behavioural therapy for PTSD in children following accidental injury This article, originally published at BMC Psychiatry by Kenardy, Cobham, Nixon, McDermott, and March (2010) plus the integration of corrections posted by the same authors (2011), talks about the presently in-progress research on the efficacy of child and family-focused cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) in treating posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in children following accidental injury. Covering three children’s hospitals in Australia, this study is a randomized controlled trial with two active interventions (‘child-focused’ and ‘family-focused’) to be compared to the ‘waitlist’ condition to determine which is associated with greater reductions in psychological and health-related outcome measures. Researchers Kenardy et al., (2010) hypothesized that the primary outcome will be a reduction in trauma symptoms both on a diagnostic interview in active treatments and the family-compared to the child-focused condition--the latter being presumed to have greater reduction effects in children trauma symptoms. Hence, the results of this research may possibly bring another evidence of efficacy of a trauma-focused CBT, particularly the child and family-focused interventions, in childhood PTSD treatment following accidental injury, upon which the soon-to-be-derived results of the trials may have significant implications to the professional practice. If proven to be effective, this early intervention protocol can be very useful in reducing traumatic stress for children. Likewise, reaching chronic stage of condition for children experiencing acute PTSD following accidental injury can be prevented. Article #2: Internet-based treatment for older adults with depression and co-morbid cardiovascular disease: protocol for a randomised, double-blind, placebo controlled trial This study is another most recent and in-progress research on the efficacy of cognitive-behavioral therapy intervention that focuses on evidence-based internet intervention program for depression on depressive mood symptoms, cognitive function, and treatment adherence in adult patients at risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD) conducted by Cockayne, Glozier, Naismith, Christensen, Neal, and Hickie (2011). The research design is an internet-based, double-blind, parallel group randomized controlled trial that will compare the effectiveness of online CBT with an online attention control placebo. The target population is Australian adults aged 45-75 years old, where the entire method of research as to the recruitment of participants, interventions, and data collection process shall all be internet-based and automated. It is hypothesized that the primary outcome of intervention (baseline to three months) is a change in the severity of depressive symptoms, while secondary outcome (baseline to three, sex, and 12-months) is presumed to show changes in cognitive function and adherence to treatment. Identifying issues on poor adherence to medication linked with depression, and depression linked with poor mental cognition, these factors post higher CVD risk and negative mental health outcomes--the challenges that researchers aim to address with utilizing CBT intervention. Again, this study is weak in matters of validity as no results yet were derived. Nevertheless, this study poses a promise of usefulness of the therapy if the trial will eventually show favorable results. Once efficacy is proven, reliable measures utilizing CBT to decrease depressive symptoms among adults as well as aspects in cognitive functioning affected in adults at risk can be earlier identified prior to the actual onset of more serious CVD and mental illness. Article #3: Patient Adherence Predicts Outcome from Cognitive Behavioral Therapy in Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder This article focuses on the effectiveness of exposure and response prevention (EX/RP) cognitive behavioral therapy intervention for the treatment of obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD). To determine its effectiveness, Simpson, Maher, Wang, Bao, Foa, and Franklin (2011) conducted a study to thirty adults aged 18 to 70 years old with OCD--equally divided (n=15) randomly to EX/RP and EX/RP augmented by motivational interview--in 3 introductory and 15 exposure sessions. Instruments used were Yale-Brown Obsessive Compulsive Scale (Y-BOCS), Clinical Global Impression Scale (CGI), HAM-D, and Patient EX/RP Adherence Scale (PEAS), and scores were analyzed using linear regression and structural equation models. Found out were higher average PEAS ratings both intent-to-treat and completer samples, and in early sessions, that significantly predicted posttreatment OCD severity. Weak points traced in this study were on the small sample size and number of therapists who participated and the research design that is for other purposes. Nevertheless, Simpson et al., (2011) found out that “patient adherence to between-session EX/RP assignments significantly predicted treatment outcome, as did early patient adherence and change in early adherence. Patient adherence mediated the effects of other predictors of outcome.” The clinical implications of these findings suggest that therapists should carefully monitor patients’ (with severe OCD symptoms) adherence to between-session assignments rather than excluding them from EX/RP as practice guidelines suggest (Simpson et al., 2011). In the presence of casual link between patient adherence and treatment outcome, then interventions should be provided to those with poor early adherence for better treatment outcome. Article # 4: An Evidence-Based Review of the Effectiveness of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Psychosocial Issues Post-Spinal Cord Injury This article is a systematic review of relevant literature (published within 1990 to October 2010) using electronic databases (MEDLINE, CINAHL, EMBASE, and PsycINFO) to examine the effectiveness of cognitive-behavioral therapy for improving psychosocial outcomes in individuals with spinal cord injury (SCI) conducted by Mehta, Orenczuk, Hansen, Aubut, Hitzig, Legassic, and Teasell (2011). The review included nine works (2 randomized control trials, 3 prospective control trials, and 1 cohort study) that met the selection criteria of utilizing CBT interventions to improve psychosocial outcomes related to depressive symptoms, anxiety, coping, and adjustment to disability of post-SCI outpatient adults. For scoring and analyses, the researchers made use of Sackett scale and Physiotherapy Evidence Database (PEDro). Results of the review showed that there is Level 1 and Level 2 evidence in favor of CBT protocols usage in persons with SCI for improving outcomes, though the issue on the very limited sample size was raised. Other issues were the multifaceted treatment practices (psychoeducation, relaxation training, cognitive restructuring, increased behavioral activation, and assertiveness training) employed in CBT interventions, making it hard to determine the exact intervention that was most effective for reducing depression and anxiety symptoms in post-SCI individuals, and only one study was identified to address the impact of social factors during therapy. Despite the limitations and issues raised, Mehta et al., (2011) came up to a conclusion that CBT is effective in improving depressive symptoms (especially those already diagnosed to have depression than those manifesting mild depressive symptoms only), coping, and adjustments in post-SCI adults while its effect on anxiety remains unclear. References Cockayne, N.L., Glozier, N., Naismith, S.L., Christensen, H., Neal, B., & Hickie, I.B. (2011). BMC Psychiatry. Retrieved 24, April 2011 from . Kenardy, J., Cobham, V., Nixon, R.D.V., McDermott, B., & March, S. (2011). BMC Psychiatry. Retrieved 24 April 2011 from < http://www.biomedcentral.com/content/pdf/1471-244x-11-15.pdf>. Kenardy, J., Cobham, V., Nixon, R.D.V., McDermott, B., & March, S. (2010). BMC Psychiatry. Retrieved 24 April 2011 from . Mehta, S., Orenczuk, S., Hansen, K.T., Aubut, J.L., Hitzig, S.L., Legassic, M., and Teasell, R.W. (2011). An evidence-based review of the effectiveness of cognitive behavioral therapy for psychosocial issues post-Spinal Cord Injury. Rehabilitation Psychology, Vol. 56, No. 1, pp. 15-25. Simpson, H.B., Maher, M.J., Wang, Y., Bao, Y., Foa, E.B., & Franklin, M. (2011). Patient adherence predicts outcome from cognitive behavioral therapy in obsessive-compulsive disorder. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, Vol. 70, No. 2, pp. 247-252. Read More