Predictors of treatment response to intensive cognitive-behavioral therapy for pediatric obsessive-compulsive disorder (original) (raw)
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Bulletin of the Menninger Clinic, 2010
Cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) with exposure and response prevention has proved to be an effective intervention for youth with obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD). Given advantages over psychiatric medications (i.e., serotonin reuptake inhibitors) based on superior safety, maintenance of response, and efficacy, CBT is considered the first-line treatment for youth with OCD. Nevertheless, a number of clinical factors can complicate CBT for OCD course and outcome. The authors review factors associated with poor treatment response, highlighting variables that pertain to the child, the family environment, and the treatment process. Specific topics include diminished insight, family accommodation, comorbidity, symptom presentation, and cognitive deficits. Remarkably, CBT for OCD is robust to these encumbrances in the majority of cases, despite the need for protocol modifications to tailor treatment to the individual child.
Family-Based Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy for Pediatric Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder
Journal of the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, 2007
Objective: To examine the relative efficacy of intensive versus weekly cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) for children and adolescents with obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD). Method: Forty children and adolescents with OCD (range 7-17 years) were randomized to receive 14 sessions of weekly or int6nsive (daily psychotherapy sessions) family-based CBT. Assessments were conducted at three time points: pretreatment, posttreatment, and 3-month follow-up. Raters were initially blind to randomization. Primary outcomes included scores on the Children's Yale-Brown Obsessive-Compulsive Scale, remission status, and ratings on the Clinical Global Impression-Severity and Clinical Global Improvement scales. Secondary outcomes included the Child Obsessive Compulsive Impact Scale-Parent Rated, Children's Depression Inventory, Multidimensional Anxiety Scale for Children, and Family Accommodation Scale. Adjunctive pharmacotherapy was not an exclusion criterion. Results: Intensive CBT was as effective as weekly treatment with some advantages present immediately after treatment. No group differences were found at follow-up, with gains being largely maintained over time. Although no group x time interaction was found for the Children's Yale-Brown Obsessive-Compulsive Scale (F 1 , 38 = 2.2, p = .15), the intensive group was rated on the Clinical Global Impression-Severity as less ill relative to the weekly group (F 1 , 38 = 9.4, p< .005). At posttreatment, 75% (15/20) of youths in the intensive group and 50% (10/20) in the weekly group met remission status criteria. Ninety percent (18/20) of youths in the intensive group and 65% (13/20) in the weekly group were considered treatment responders on the Clinical Global Improvement (X2 = 3.6, p = .06). Conclusions: Both intensive and weekly CBT are efficacious treatments for pediatric OCD. Intensive treatment may have slight immediate advantages over weekly CBT, although both modalities have similar outcomes at 3-month follow-up.
Change Patterns During Family-Based Treatment for Pediatric Obsessive Compulsive Disorder
Journal of Child and Family Studies
Cognitive behavior therapy (CBT) for young people with obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD) has recently been enhanced to target family environment factors. However, the process of change for OCD symptoms and family factors during treatment is not well understood. Uniquely, we explored patterns of change for OCD symptoms and a range of family variables throughout Baseline, Early, Mid, and Late treatment phases of family-based CBT (FCBT) for 15 young people with OCD using multiple informants. We predicted a linear reduction in OCD symptom severity and family accommodation (FA) across treatment phases, however the investigation into other family factor change patterns was exploratory. OCD symptom severity, FA, parental distress tolerance (DT), and conflict all showed significant linear change patterns across treatment phases according to multiple informants. In addition, the largest proportion of change for these variables typically occurred during the first third of treatment, highlig...
Journal of the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, 2005
Objective: To evaluate the relative efficacy of (1) individual cognitive-behavioral family-based therapy (CBFT); (2) group CBFT; and (3) a waitlist control group in the treatment of childhood obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD). Method: This study, conducted at a university clinic in Brisbane, Australia, involved 77 children and adolescents with OCD who were randomized to individual CBFT, group CBFT, or a 4-to 6-week waitlist control condition. Children were assessed before and after treatment and at 3 months and 6 months following the completion of treatment using diagnostic interviews, symptom severity interviews, and self-report measures. Parental distress, family functioning, sibling distress, and levels of accommodation to OCD demands were also assessed. Active treatment involved a manualized 14-week cognitivebehavioral protocol, with parental and sibling components. Results: By an evaluable patient analysis, statistically and clinically significant pretreatment-to-posttreatment change occurred in OCD diagnostic status and severity across both individual and group CBFT, with no significant differences in improvement ratings between these conditions. There were no significant changes across measures for the waitlist condition. Treatment gains were maintained up to 6 months of follow-up. Conclusions: Contrary to previous findings and expectations, group CBFT is as effective in reducing OCD symptoms for children and adolescents as individual treatment. Findings support the efficacy and durability of CBFT in treating childhood OCD.
Journal of the American …, 2007
Objective: To examine the relative efficacy of intensive versus weekly cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) for children and adolescents with obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD). Method: Forty children and adolescents with OCD (range 7-17 years) were randomized to receive 14 sessions of weekly or int6nsive (daily psychotherapy sessions) family-based CBT. Assessments were conducted at three time points: pretreatment, posttreatment, and 3-month follow-up. Raters were initially blind to randomization. Primary outcomes included scores on the Children's Yale-Brown Obsessive-Compulsive Scale, remission status, and ratings on the Clinical Global Impression-Severity and Clinical Global Improvement scales. Secondary outcomes included the Child Obsessive Compulsive Impact Scale-Parent Rated, Children's Depression Inventory, Multidimensional Anxiety Scale for Children, and Family Accommodation Scale. Adjunctive pharmacotherapy was not an exclusion criterion. Results: Intensive CBT was as effective as weekly treatment with some advantages present immediately after treatment. No group differences were found at follow-up, with gains being largely maintained over time. Although no group x time interaction was found for the Children's Yale-Brown Obsessive-Compulsive Scale (F 1 , 38 = 2.2, p = .15), the intensive group was rated on the Clinical Global Impression-Severity as less ill relative to the weekly group (F 1 , 38 = 9.4, p< .005). At posttreatment, 75% (15/20) of youths in the intensive group and 50% (10/20) in the weekly group met remission status criteria. Ninety percent (18/20) of youths in the intensive group and 65% (13/20) in the weekly group were considered treatment responders on the Clinical Global Improvement (X2 = 3.6, p = .06). Conclusions: Both intensive and weekly CBT are efficacious treatments for pediatric OCD. Intensive treatment may have slight immediate advantages over weekly CBT, although both modalities have similar outcomes at 3-month follow-up.
Cognitive and Behavioral Practice, 2009
Serotonin reuptake inhibitor medications and cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) are both effective treatments for pediatric obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD). Despite recommendations that youth with OCD be treated with CBT alone or together with serotonin reuptake inhibitor medication, many youth are treated with medication alone or with non-CBT psychotherapy initially. Although effective, symptom remission with medication alone is rare (e.g., only 21.4% of youth achieved remission with sertraline in the Pediatric OCD Treatment Study, 2004) and residual symptoms often remain (e.g., 58% of subjects in the March et al. [1998] sertraline trial were not considered treatment responders). This paper reviews the literature on the efficacy of CBT for pediatric OCD, particularly as it relates to the treatment of youth with prior inadequate response to medication. It also describes an intensive, family-based CBT program for children and adolescents with OCD and support for its efficacy among those with prior partial-or nonresponse to medication. Finally, we present a case study of an adolescent girl with OCD who participated in the intensive treatment program after having limited benefit from medication and non-CBT psychotherapy and experienced a favorable response. Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) among children and adolescents frequently is a debilitating disorder that, if left untreated, often runs a chronic course (Thomsen & Mikkelsen, 1995). Although OCD previously was considered to be rare among youth, more recent research has revealed 6-to 12-month prevalence rates of 1.3% to 4.0% among children and adolescents (
Predictors of Treatment Response in Pediatric Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder
Journal of the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, 2008
Objective: To examine predictors of treatment response in pediatric obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD). Method: A literature review of psychotherapy (i.e., cognitive-behavioral therapy) and medication studies for pediatric OCD published from 1985 to 2007 was conducted using several databases. Results: The literature search produced a total of 21 studies (6 cognitive-behavioral therapy, 13 medication, and 2 combination studies) that met specific methodological criteria. Across studies, the following nine predictors were examined: child sex, child age, duration of illness/age at onset, baseline severity of obsessive-compulsive symptoms, type of obsessive-compulsive symptoms, comorbid disorders/symptoms, psychophysiological factors, neuropsychological factors, and family factors. Among all of the studies, there was little evidence that sex, age, or duration of illness (age at onset) was associated with treatment response. Baseline severity of obsessive-compulsive symptoms and family dysfunction were associated with poorer response to cognitive-behavioral therapy, whereas comorbid tics and externalizing disorders were associated with poorer response in medication-only studies. Conclusions: Overall, there are limited data on predictors of treatment response for pediatric OCD. The majority of studies are plagued with methodological limitations and post hoc approaches. Additional research is needed to better delineate the predictors of treatment response in pediatric OCD with the goal of developing individualized treatment approaches.