title: Short-term psychodynamic psychotherapy for somatic disorders. Systematic review and meta-analysis of clinical trials.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Somatic symptom disorders are common, disabling and costly. Individually provided short-term psychodynamic psychotherapies (STPP) have shown promising results. However, the effectiveness of STPP for somatic symptom disorders has not been reviewed.
  
  
  METHODS
  We undertook a systematic review of randomized controlled trials and controlled before and after studies. The outcomes included psychological symptoms, physical symptoms, social-occupational function, healthcare utilization and treatment continuation.
  
  
  RESULTS
  A total of 23 studies met the inclusion criteria and covered a broad range of somatic disorders. Thirteen were RCTs and 10 were case series with pre-post outcome assessment. Of the included studies, 21/23 (91.3%), 11/12 (91.6%), 16/19 (76.2%) and 7/9 (77.8%) reported significant or possible effects on physical symptoms, psychological symptoms, social-occupational function and healthcare utilization respectively. Meta-analysis was possible for 14 studies and revealed significant effects on physical symptoms, psychiatric symptoms and social adjustment which were maintained in long-term follow-up. Random-effect modeling attenuated some of these relationships. There was a 54% greater treatment retention in the STPP group versus controls.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  STPP may be effective for a range of medical and physical conditions underscoring the role of patients' emotional adjustment in overall health. Future research should include high-quality randomized and clinical effectiveness studies with attention to healthcare use and costs.
authors: Department of Psychiatry, Centre for Emotions and Health, Dalhousie University, Halifax, NS, Canada. allan.abbass@dal.ca
authors: Allan
authors: A
authors: Abbass
authors: Stephen
authors: S
authors: Kisely
authors: Kurt
authors: K
authors: Kroenke
mesh_terms: D006801:Humans; D011613:Psychotherapy / Q000379:methods*; D016032:Randomized Controlled Trials as Topic; D013001:Somatoform Disorders / Q000628:therapy*