Cognitive-behavioral therapy for women with lifelong vaginismus: a randomized waiting-list controlled trial of efficacy.
Women with lifelong vaginismus (N=117) were randomly assigned to cognitive-behavioral group therapy, cognitive-behavioral bibliotherapy, or a waiting list. Manualized treatment comprised sexual education, relaxation exercises, gradual exposure, cognitive therapy, and sensate focus therapy. Group therapy consisted of ten 2-hr sessions with 6 to 9 participants per group. Assistance with minimal-contact bibliotherapy consisted of 6 biweekly, 15-min telephone contacts. Twenty-one percent of the participants left the study before posttreatment assessment. Intent-to-treat analysis revealed that successful intercourse at posttreatment was reported by 14% of the treated participants compared with none of the participants in the control condition. At the 12-month follow-up 21% of the group therapy participants and 15% of the bibliotherapy participants, respectively, reported successful intercourse. Cognitive-behavioral treatment of lifelong vaginismus was thus found to be efficacious, but the small effect size of the treatment warrants future efforts to improve the treatment.
van Lankveld
Jacques J D M
JJ
Department of Medical, Clinical, and Experimental Psychology, University of Maastricht, and Department of Medical Psychology, Academic Hospital Maastricht, The Netherlands. j.vanlankveld@dep.unimaas.nl
ter Kuile
Moniek M
MM
de Groot
H Ellen
HE
Melles
Reinhilde
R
Nefs
Janneke
J
Zandbergen
Maartje
M
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D001638:Bibliotherapy; D015928:Cognitive Behavioral Therapy; D003131:Combined Modality Therapy; D019546:Couples Therapy; D003887:Desensitization, Psychologic; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009126:Muscle Relaxation; D009426:Netherlands; D012736:Sex Education; D052065:Vaginismus / Q000523:psychology / Q000628:therapy*