A brief narrative summary of randomized controlled trials investigating EMDR treatment of patients with depression

Description

Depression, one of the most common mental disorders, is characterized by enormous social costs and limited rates of treatment success, even though psychotherapeutic and pharmacological treatments currently contribute to an increase in the remission rate.

In light of recent studies that have shown that traumas and adverse life experiences may represent risk factors for the onset of depression, the therapeutic approach of Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) therapy has been seen as potentially effective in the treatment of depression. The purpose of the present brief narrative review is to summarize the current literature on the efficacy of EMDR in patients with depression, in particular by referring to randomized controlled clinical trials (RCTs) that examined depression as a primary outcome. The data examined are updated to March 2019 and count 7 RCT studies covering the years from 2001 to 2019. They are heterogeneous by type of intervention and demographic characteristics of the sample.

Although the selected studies are few and with different methodological critical issues, the findings reported by the different authors suggest in a preliminary way that EMDR can be a useful treatment for depression.

Format

Dissertation/Thesis

Language

English

Author(s)

Francesca Malandrone
Sara Carletto
Michael Hase
Arne Hofmann
Luca Ostacoli

Original Work Citation

Malandrone, F., Careltto, S., Hase, M., Hofmann, A., & Ostacoli, L. (2024). A brief narrative summary of randomized controlled trials investigating EMDR treatment of patients with depression. Journal of EMDR Practice and Research, 13(4), 302–306. doi:10.1891/1933-3196.13.4.302

Citation

“A brief narrative summary of randomized controlled trials investigating EMDR treatment of patients with depression,” Francine Shapiro Library, accessed April 27, 2024, https://francineshapirolibrary.omeka.net/items/show/28608.

Output Formats