Cognitive-behavior therapy vs exposure therapy in the treatment of PTSD in refugees.
The present study investigated the efficacy of cognitive-behavior therapy (CBT) and exposure therapy (E) in the treatment of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in refugees. Sixteen outpatients fulfilling the DSM-IV criteria for PTSD were randomized to one of the two treatments. Assessor and self-report measures of PTSD-symptoms, generalized anxiety, depression, quality of life and cognitive schemas were administered before and after treatment, and at a 6-month follow-up. The patients were treated individually for 16-20 weekly sessions. The results showed that both treatments resulted in large improvements on all the measures, which were maintained at the follow-up. There was no difference between E and CBT on any measure. E and CBT led to a 48 and 53% reduction on PTSD-symptoms, respectively, a 49 and 50% reduction on generalized anxiety, and a 54 and 57% reduction on depression. The results were maintained at the 6-month follow-up. The conclusion that can be drawn is that both E and CBT can be effective treatments for PTSD in refugees.
Paunovic
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Department of Psychology, Stockholm University, Sweden. npc@psychology.su.se
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D000328:Adult; D015928:Cognitive Behavioral Therapy; D003887:Desensitization, Psychologic; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010555:Personality Inventory; D012036:Refugees / Q000523:psychology*; D013313:Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic / Q000523:psychology / Q000628:therapy*; D016896:Treatment Outcome