Response to “Comparing the effectiveness of EMDR and TF-CBT for children and adolescents: A meta-analysis

With interest we read the article by Lewey and colleagues describing the results of a meta-analysis, entitled “Comparing the Effectiveness of EMDR and TF-CBT for Children and Adolescents: A Meta-Analysis” (Lewey et al. 2018). In this article, the authors presented the available evidence on the effectiveness of Trauma Focused-Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (TF-CBT) and Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) therapy for children and adolescents with symptoms of Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). The authors included studies from 1989 until 2015 that applied TF-CBT and/or EMDR therapy in children and adolescents with full or subclinical PTSD, and compared these treatments to waiting list, head to head or other active treatment control conditions. Based on the results of this meta-analysis, the authors concluded that both TF-CBT and EMDR therapy were effective in treating PTSD, and that TF-CBT was marginally more effective than EMDR.

Journal

English

Carlijn de Roos
Nanda Rommelse
Rogier Donders
Rik Knipschild
Iva Bicanic
Ad de Jongh

de Roos, C., Rommelse, N., Knipschild, R. D., Bicanic, I., & de Jongh, A. (2019, April). Response to “Comparing the effectiveness of EMDR and TF-CBT for children and adolescents: A meta-analysis.  Journal of Child & Adolescent Trauma, 1–3. doi:10.1007/s40653-018-0212-1