title: An Internet-based treatment for flying phobia (NO-FEAR Airlines): study protocol for a randomized controlled trial.
abstract: Flying phobia (FP) is a common and disabling mental disorder. Although in vivo exposure is the treatment of choice, it is linked to a number of limitations in its implementation. Particularly important, is the limited access to the feared stimulus (i.e., plane). Moreover, the economic cost of in vivo exposure should be specially considered as well as the difficulty of applying the exposure technique in an appropriate way; controlling important variables such as the duration of the exposure or the number of sessions. ICTs could help to reduce these limitations. Computer-assisted treatments have remarkable advantages in treating FP. Furthermore, they can be delivered through the Internet, increasing their advantages and reaching more people in need. The Internet has been established as an effective way to treat a wide range of mental disorders. However, as far as we know, no controlled studies exist on FP treatment via the Internet. This study aims to evaluate the efficacy of an Internet-based treatment for FP (NO-FEAR Airlines) versus a waiting list control group. Secondary objectives will be to explore two ways of delivering NO-FEAR Airlines, with or without therapist guidance, and study the patients' acceptance of the program. This paper presents the study protocol.
  
  
  
  The study is a randomized controlled trial. A minimum of 57 participants will be randomly assigned to three conditions: a) NO-FEAR Airlines totally self-applied, b) NO-FEAR Airlines with therapist guidance, or c) a waiting list control group (6 weeks). Primary outcomes measures will be the Fear of Flying Questionnaire-II and the Fear of Flying Scale. Secondary outcomes will be included to assess other relevant clinical measures, such as the Fear and Avoidance Scales, Clinician Severity Scale, and Patient's Improvement scale. Analyses of post-treatment flights will be conducted. Treatment acceptance and preference measures will also be included. Intention-to-treat and per protocol analyses will be conducted.
  
  
  
  An Internet-based treatment for FP could have considerable advantages in managing in vivo exposure limitations, specifically in terms of access to treatment, acceptance, adherence, and the cost-effectiveness of the intervention. This is the first randomized controlled trial to study this issue.
  
  
  
  Clinicaltrials.gov: NCT02298478 . Trial registration date 3 November 2014.
authors.affiliation: Universitat Jaume I, Castellón, Spain.
authors.forename: Daniel
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Campos
authors.affiliation: Universitat Jaume I, Castellón, Spain.|CIBER de Fisiopatología de la Obesidad y Nutrición (CIBEROBN), Madrid, Spain.
authors.forename: Juana
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Bretón-López
authors.affiliation: Universitat Jaume I, Castellón, Spain.|CIBER de Fisiopatología de la Obesidad y Nutrición (CIBEROBN), Madrid, Spain.
authors.forename: Cristina
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Botella
authors.affiliation: Universitat Jaume I, Castellón, Spain.
authors.forename: Adriana
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Mira
authors.affiliation: Universitat Jaume I, Castellón, Spain.
authors.forename: Diana
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Castilla
authors.affiliation: CIBER de Fisiopatología de la Obesidad y Nutrición (CIBEROBN), Madrid, Spain.|Universitat de València, Valencia, Spain.
authors.forename: Rosa
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Baños
authors.affiliation: Universitat de les Illes Balears, Palma de Mallorca, Spain.
authors.forename: Miquel
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Tortella-Feliu
authors.affiliation: Universitat Jaume I, Castellón, Spain. squero@uji.es.|CIBER de Fisiopatología de la Obesidad y Nutrición (CIBEROBN), Madrid, Spain. squero@uji.es.
authors.forename: Soledad
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Quero
mesh_terms: D005239:Fear / Q000523:psychology; D006801:Humans; D020407:Internet; D010698:Phobic Disorders / Q000523:psychology* / Q000628:therapy*; D016037:Single-Blind Method; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D013813:Therapy, Computer-Assisted / Q000379:methods*; D016896:Treatment Outcome; D014850:Waiting Lists
keywords: Flying phobia; Internet-based exposure; Randomized controlled trial; Self-help; Virtual reality