Norwegian researchers from Sogn og Fjordane University looked at
eleven studies on the impact of music therapy on children and
adolescents with various forms of psychopathology and mental health
problems. There was special interest in how the type of pathology, the
child’s age and the kind of music therapy approach influenced the
outcome.
There were a total of 188 subjects in the collection of eleven relevant
studies found. Effect sizes from these studies were combined, with
weighting for sample size, and their distribution was examined.
A newly published study from Perioperative Services at Concord Hospital in New Hampshire of 84 patients undergoing gynecologic laparoscopy that looked at the effects of two interventions - guided imagery and music - on post-operative pain, nausea and vomiting (PONV) and length of stay (LOS), showed that patients in both the guided imagery and music groups had significantly less pain on PACU discharge to home than controls. The audio recordings used in the study were from Health Journeys.
Forty-six patients were randomized to receive drug (group 1) or
hypnotic sedation (group 2) during balloon angioplasty of the left
anterior descending coronary artery. Patients were continuously
monitored by intracoronary and standard electrocardiograms, and heart
rate spectral variability was also recorded.
Normalized units of low- and high-frequency components and the ratio of
low to high frequency were measured during balloon inflations. The ST
segment shifted at the first balloon inflation from 0.02 +/- 0.01 to
0.09 +/- 0.6 mm in group 1 and from 0.02 +/- 0.08 to 0.1 +/- 0.6 in
group 2 mm (p <0.05).
A new study from the National Institute on Aging finds that guided imagery helps elderly patients to remember to take their medicine. Researchers Linda Liu, Ph.D., of the University of Michigan, and Denise Park, Ph.D., of the University of Illinois
found that older adults who spent a few minutes imagining and picturing
how they would test their blood sugar were 50 percent more likely to
actually do these tests on a regular basis than those who used other
memory techniques requiring far more conscious effort.
Thirty-one non-diabetic elderly volunteers were taught to do home blood
glucose tests. The participants, ages 60 to 81, were randomly assigned
to one of three groups and told to monitor their blood sugar levels
four specific times daily. They were not allowed to use timers, alarms
or other devices.
In this case study, clinicians from the Department of Social Work at The College of Judea and Samaria
in Ariel, Israel, feeling that spiritual concerns play a huge part
among those who have attempted suicide, yet are poorly addressed, if
addressed at all, by their psychotherapists, tested an innovative group
format that made use of techniques that helped their clients tap into
spiritual sources.
A therapeutic group/workshop for suicide survivors was designed to
incorporate relaxation and mindfulness meditation, along with guided
imagery to access inner wisdom.
Researchers from The University of Cincinnati analyzed data from ten
different guided imagery studies to assess the trajectory of effect
size with continued imagery practice, and the relationship between
practice duration and strength of outcomes.
Four new studies show that Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy is a first-line treatment for panic and anxiety disorders; that it is extremely and long-lastingly effective for children and adolescents; and very effective for older adults, too..
A review article from the Mass. General/Harvard Medical School
reports that Cogntive-Behavioral Therapy (CBT) is currently considered
a first-line treatment for panic disorder, as well as a strategy for
those who do not respond to medication, and a replacement for those who
want to discontinue medication. A short-term intervention, it generally
consists of 12-15 sessions of either individual or group therapy. The
treatment focuses on helping patients learn about the nature of the
disorder and acquire a set of strategies (including relaxation, imagery
and other self-regulation skills) that counter the fears of panic
attacks themselves, and break the recurring cycle of anticipatory
anxiety, panic, and agoraphobic avoidance.
Citation: Rayburn NR, Otto MW.Cognitive-behavioral therapy for panic
disorder: a review of treatment elements, strategies, and outcomes. CNS
Spectrum. 2003 May;8 (5):pp. 356-62.
In a randomized, controlled, clinical trial, researchers at Stanford University
explored the efficacy of treating panic disorder with biofeedback
focused on their breathing patterns. Because sustained hypocapnia
resulting from hyperventilation is believed to be a key mechanism in
producing and maintaining panic states, this intervention was designed
to interrupt the cycle and allow panic to subside.
Subjects were taught to access respiratory biofeedback from a
handheld capnometry device in a brief, 4-week training, aimed at
voluntarily increasing self-monitored end-tidal partial pressure of
carbon dioxide (PCO2) and reducing respiratory rate and instability
through breathing exercises in patients'' environment.
Researchers from the Department of Psychiatry at Yale University School of Medicine
compared the effectiveness of disulfiram (Antabuse) with placebo
medication as well as against Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) and
Interpersonal Psychotherapy (IPT) in reducing cocaine use in a
randomized, placebo-controlled, double blinded (regarding the meds)
design.
At a community-based, outpatient, substance abuse treatment program,
121 patients meeting the criteria for current cocaine dependence were
randomly assigned to four treatment conditions: disulfiram (Antabuse)
plus CBT, disulfiram plus IPT, placebo plus CBT, and placebo plus IPT.
Researchers from Michigan State University reported on their
randomized, controlled clinical trial to evaluate the efficacy of a
cognitive behavioral intervention on reducing symptom severity for
patients diagnosed with solid tumors and undergoing a first course of
chemotherapy. Investigators also looked into whether or not the
intervention had an additive or interactive effect on symptom severity,
alongside the use of supportive medications.
Patients (n = 237) were accrued from comprehensive and community cancer
centers, interviewed, and randomly assigned to either the experimental
intervention (n = 118) or conventional care (n = 119). A symptom
severity index, based on summed severity scores across 15 symptoms, was
the primary measure of outcome. In addition, information was collected
from medical records about each patient''s cancer site, the stage at
diagnosis, history of chemotherapy protocols, and use of supportive
medications.
A study of chemotherapy patients at The UCSF Mt. Zion Infusion Center by Phaedra Caruso, PhD and Trudy Helge, PhD
(at the time doctoral candidates in psychology), compared two kinds of
guided imagery - self-generated, unique, fill-in-the-blank type imagery
vs. "canned" imagery - standardized, physiologically-based, scripted
imagery - along with a third condition: a progressive relaxation tape.
All three interventions were recorded by the same person - imagery
expert Martin Rossman MD - and offered as part of a four-session course.
When the data were analyzed and broken down, Caruso and Helge found
that both kinds of guided imagery performed equally well, and
significantly better than the progressive relaxation, in reducing
depression and anxiety for the patients - indeed, increasingly so over
time.
