Brief cognitive-behavioral therapy with fibromyalgia patients in routine care
published online 13 March 2009.
Abstract
Objective
The purpose of the present study was to evaluate the effectiveness of a brief cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) group intervention for fibromyalgia syndrome in routine care.
Method
Thirty-four female outpatients who participated in a 5- to 6-week group CBT program were assessed for depression (Beck Depression Inventory), anxiety (State-Trait Anxiety Inventory), coping strategies (Coping Questionnaire for Chronic Pain), physical functioning (Fibromyalgia Impact Questionnaire), and somatization (Health Attitude Survey) at 3 time points (baseline, pretreatment, and posttreatment) using a pre-post, quasi-experimental design.
Results
Twenty-three female outpatients (68% of the initial sample) for which data were available in all 3 time points were included in the analyses. No changes were found during the waiting period. During the treatment period, there were significant reductions in depression (P = .001) and anxiety (P = .006) symptoms and an increased use of distraction skills (P < .001). The analysis of rate of change showed a significant correlation between anxiety and depression (P = .004), but not between these variables and the use of distraction as a coping strategy.
Conclusion
Brief group CBT is effective in reducing emotional distress in female patients with long-standing fibromyalgia syndrome in the context of routine care. Attention-distraction skills appear to be amenable to change by means of brief CBT, but further research is needed to clarify their contribution to short-term clinical improvement.
aInstituto de Psiquiatría y Salud Mental, Hospital Universitario Clínico San Carlos, Madrid 28040, Spain
bCentro de Salud Mental, Hospital Universitario “Marqués de Valdecilla”, Santander 39008, Spain
cCentro de Investigación Biomédica en Red de Salud Mental, CIBERSAM, Madrid 28040, Spain
ABSTRACT