RESUMO
BACKGROUND: Pathological gambling (PG), a disabling disorder experienced by approximately 1% of adults, has few empirically validated treatments. A recent study demonstrated that 6 sessions of imaginal desensitization plus motivational interviewing (IDMI) was effective in achieving abstinence for a majority of individuals with PG. This study sought to examine whether those benefits were maintained 6 months post-treatment. METHODS: Sixty-eight individuals who met DSM-IV criteria for PG were randomly assigned to 6 sessions of IDMI or Gamblers Anonymous (GA) referral over an 8-week period. Participants who failed to respond to GA were offered IDMI after the 8-week acute treatment period. All individuals who responded to IDMI were contacted after 6 months and assessed with measures of gambling severity and psychosocial functioning. RESULTS: Forty-four participants completed 6 sessions of IDMI (25 initially assigned to IDMI and 19 to GA). Thirty-five of the 44 (79.5%) responded during acute treatment, and all 35 were available for a 6-month evaluation. All gambling severity scales maintained statistically significant gains from baseline, although some measures showed significant worsening compared with post-IDMI treatment. CONCLUSIONS: Six sessions of IDMI resulted in statistically significant reductions in PG urges and behavior, which were largely maintained for 6 months.
Assuntos
Dessensibilização Psicológica , Jogo de Azar , Imagens, Psicoterapia , Entrevista Psicológica , Reabilitação Vocacional/psicologia , Adolescente , Adulto , Idoso , Terapia Cognitivo-Comportamental , Manual Diagnóstico e Estatístico de Transtornos Mentais , Feminino , Seguimentos , Jogo de Azar/diagnóstico , Jogo de Azar/psicologia , Jogo de Azar/terapia , Humanos , Masculino , Pessoa de Meia-Idade , Motivação , Índice de Gravidade de Doença , Resultado do TratamentoRESUMO
Sixty-eight individuals were randomised to either six sessions of imaginal desensitisation plus motivational interviewing (IDMI) or Gamblers Anonymous. Individuals assigned to IDMI had significantly greater reductions in Yale-Brown Obsessive Compulsive Scale Modified for Pathological Gambling total scores, gambling urges and gambling behaviour. People who failed to respond to Gamblers Anonymous reported significantly greater reduction in pathological gambling symptoms following later assignment to IDMI. Abstinence was achieved by 63.6% during the acute IDMI treatment period.