Behavioural treatment of trichotillomania: two-year follow-up results.
Post-treatment evaluation studies of behaviour therapy (BT) for trichotillomania (TTM) have shown that BT is successful in reducing symptoms in this impulse-control disorder. The present study was aimed at investigating gain maintenance at long-term follow-up. TTM-related symptoms and other symptom characteristics were evaluated in 28 patients suffering from TTM before and after brief BT and at a 3-month and 2-year follow-up. The manual-based BT consisted of self-control procedures offered in six sessions. Pre-post effect sizes for TTM symptoms at post-treatment evaluation and at the two follow-ups were 2.91, 1.47, and .87. Compared to the post-treatment effects, the 3-month and 2-year follow-up effect sizes had decreased by 49% and 70%, respectively. Better 2-year follow-up results were associated with lower pre-treatment levels of depressive symptoms and with complete abstinence from hair pulling immediately after treatment.
Keijsers
Ger P J
GP
Department of Clinical Psychology, Radboud University Nijmegen, P.O. Box 9104, 6500 HE Nijmegen, The Netherlands. g.keijsers@psych.ru.nl
van Minnen
Agnes
A
Hoogduin
Cees A L
CA
Klaassen
Bram N W
BN
Hendriks
Mathieu J
MJ
Tanis-Jacobs
Jorg
J
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000704:Analysis of Variance; D001521:Behavior Therapy / Q000379:methods*; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011614:Psychotherapy, Brief / Q000379:methods*; D012044:Regression Analysis; D016896:Treatment Outcome; D014256:Trichotillomania / Q000628:therapy*