Self-help interventions for young people with persistent physical symptoms: A systematic review.

OBJECTIVE: Persistent physical symptoms are frequent among young people causing considerable social, psychological, and economic consequences. Easily accessible interventions adapted to non-specialized settings are needed. We aimed to systematically review randomized controlled trials on self-help interventions for young people with persistent physical symptoms compared to active or passive control groups. Our purpose was to 1) describe applied therapeutic approaches and content and 2) examine potential effects on symptom burden and psychosocial outcomes. METHODS: We included randomized controlled trials on minimal contact self-help interventions for young people with persistent physical symptoms. Systematic literature searches in PubMed, Cochrane Central, Embase, and PsycINFO were conducted. Study selection, data extraction and quality assessment were performed independently by two reviewers. A narrative synthesis of the effects was performed. RESULTS: We identified 11 studies on self-help interventions for young people. The methodological quality of the studies was generally low. Participants suffered from impairing fatigue, headache, abdominal pain, and musculoskeletal or multi-site pain. Applied therapeutic approaches were cognitive behavioral therapy, relaxation training, hypnotherapy, and written self-disclosure. Outcomes were diverse and mainly related to symptom burden, whereas psychosocial outcomes were only sporadically examined. Overall, evidence of effectiveness of self-help interventions in alleviating symptom burden was weak, and potential effects could not be linked to one specific theoretical approach. CONCLUSION: Few self-help interventions of diverse content exist for young people with persistent physical symptoms. Rigorously designed studies that include recommended outcome domains assessed by aligned measures are needed to determine and compare the clinical value of such interventions.

"Understand your illness and your needs": Assessment-informed patient education for people with multiple functional somatic syndromes.

OBJECTIVES: Patients suffering from multiple functional somatic syndromes (FSS) such as fibromyalgia, chronic fatigue syndrome, or irritable bowel syndrome, often lack both a clear diagnosis and tangible illness explanations, which is a barrier for treatment engagement. We tested a short-term intervention taking the unifying concept of Bodily Distress Syndrome (BDS) as a point of departure. The intervention consisted of a clinical assessment, group-based patient education, and one follow-up consultation. METHODS: 174 patients were included and received questionnaires at baseline, after clinical assessment, after patient education, and median 19 weeks after baseline. Data were analyzed using random effects models and simple t-tests. Qualitative data were thematically analyzed. RESULTS: We found small reductions in symptom levels, considerable reductions in illness worry, and improvement of illness perceptions and illness-related behaviors. Overall, patients evaluated the intervention positively and expressed high expectations for further treatment. Qualitative results mainly supported these findings. CONCLUSION: Targeting illness perceptions through patient education is crucial to obtain patient engagement in self-help management or further treatment. This may lead to improved outcomes. PRACTICAL IMPLICATIONS: Physicians in primary and secondary care should strive to give patients with multiple FSS a clear understanding that their various FSS diagnoses are related and provide tangible illness explanations.

Is psychotherapy for functional somatic syndromes harmful? A mixed methods study on negative effects.

INTRODUCTION: Concern for negative effects of psychotherapy for functional somatic syndromes (FSS) has been expressed by clinicians and some patient associations, which may prevent patients from seeking treatment. Therefore, we sought to explore the occurrence and characteristics of negative effects from group-based psychotherapy as experienced by patients with severe or multiple FSS. METHODS: An adapted version of the explanatory sequential mixed methods design was applied. We used data from an on-going pilot study on Acceptance and Commitment Therapy and Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction. Negative effects were measured by Inventory for the assessment of Negative Effects of Psychotherapy (INEP). In addition, telephone interviews were conducted with randomly chosen patients and patients who reported negative effects. The latter were asked to elaborate on their INEP response. Quantitative data were analysed descriptively while interview transcripts were explored by thematic analysis. RESULTS: Eighty patients responded to the questionnaire (89%). Negative effects to different extent (from 'slightly agree' to 'fully agree') were reported by 25 (31%). The most frequent negative effects were dependence on the therapist (12%), feeling down after therapy (6%) and insurance problems (7%). By exploring 27 participants' experiences of negative effects 3 main themes were identified: relations in therapy, outcome and transition from therapy to everyday life. CONCLUSION: Patients with FSS reported a few specific negative effects, all with low frequency. Generally, therapy was well-received. Some patients did however express negative effects both within and outside the therapeutic context. It is important to inform patients about potential negative effects prior to psychotherapy.

Acceptance and commitment group therapy (ACT-G) for health anxiety: a randomized controlled trial.

BACKGROUND: Severe health anxiety is frequent and costly, yet rarely diagnosed or treated. Earlier treatment studies show problems with recruitment, dropout and recovery. In the current study, the authors aimed to test the effect of acceptance and commitment group therapy (ACT-G) compared to waitlist in patients with severe health anxiety. METHOD: During March 2010 to April 2012, 126 consecutively referred patients meeting research criteria for severe health anxiety were block-randomized (1:1) to ACT-G or a 10 months' waitlist (Clinicaltrials.gov, no. NCT01158430). Patients allocated to ACT-G were treated in seven groups of nine patients between December 2010 and October 2012 and received nine weekly 3-h group sessions and a booster session consisting of ACT techniques. The primary outcome was decided a priori as the mean change in self-reported illness worry on the Whiteley-7 Index (WI) from baseline to 10 months' follow-up. Secondary outcomes were improvement in emotional distress and health-related quality of life at 10 months' follow-up. RESULTS: Intention-to-treat analysis showed a statistically significant mean difference of 20.5 points [95% confidence interval (CI) 11.7-29.4, p < 0.001] on the WI between the groups at 10 months, and the between-group effect sizes were large (Cohen's d = 0.89, 95% CI 0.50-1.29). The number needed to treat was 2.4 (95% CI 1.4-3.4, p < 0.001). Diagnosis and treatment were well accepted by the patients. CONCLUSIONS: ACT-G seems feasible, acceptable and effective in treating severe health anxiety.

Are illness perceptions related to future healthcare expenditure in patients with somatoform disorders?

BACKGROUND: Somatoform disorders are costly for society in terms of increased healthcare expenditure. Patients' illness perceptions have been found to play a role in somatoform disorders. However, it is unclear whether illness perceptions predict higher health costs in these patients. METHOD: A total of 1785 primary care patients presenting a new health complaint completed a questionnaire on their illness perceptions and emotional distress before the consultation. The physicians completed a questionnaire for each patient on diagnostics after the consultation. In a stratified subsample, physician interviewers established diagnoses of DSM-IV somatization and undifferentiated somatoform disorders (n = 144) using the Schedules for Clinical Assessment in Neuropsychiatry. Healthcare expenditure was obtained from Danish health registers for a 2-year follow-up period. RESULTS: Patients had more negative perceptions of their well-defined physical health problems when they had a co-morbid somatoform disorder. A strong illness identity [ß = 0.120, 95% confidence interval (CI) 0.029-0.212, p = 0.012], perceived negative consequences (ß = 0.010, 95% CI 0.001-0.019, p = 0.024), a long timeline perspective (ß = 0.013, 95% CI 0.005-0.021, p = 0.001), low personal control (ß = - 0.009, 95% CI -0.015 to -0.002, p = 0.011) and negative emotional representations (ß = 0.009, 95% CI 0.002-0.017, p = 0.020) predicted healthcare expenditure in somatoform disorders. CONCLUSIONS: The results suggest that illness perceptions play a role in the perpetuation of symptoms in somatoform disorders and predict higher future healthcare expenditure among a subgroup of these patients.

Acceptance and commitment group therapy for health anxiety--results from a pilot study.

Health anxiety (or hypochondriasis) is prevalent, may be persistent and disabling for the sufferers and associated with high societal costs. Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) is a new third-wave behavioral cognitive therapy that has not yet been tested in health anxiety. 34 consecutive Danish patients with severe health anxiety were referred from general practitioners or hospital departments and received a ten-session ACT group therapy. Patients were followed up by questionnaires for 6 months. There were significant reductions in health anxiety, somatic symptoms and emotional distress at 6 months compared to baseline: a 49% reduction in health anxiety (Whiteley-7 Index), a 47% decrease in emotional distress (SCL-8), and a 40% decrease in somatic symptoms (SCL-90R Somatization Subscale). The patients' emotional representations and perception of the consequences of their illness (IPQ) improved significantly, and 87% of the patients were very or extremely satisfied with the treatment.

Are there gender differences in coping with neck pain following acute whiplash trauma? A 12-month follow-up study.

BACKGROUND: Little is known about gender differences in coping after whiplash, and to date possible interaction of gender and coping on recovery has not been investigated. AIMS: To examine if gender differences in coping are associated with long-lasting neck pain after acute whiplash. Seven hundred and forty participants referred from emergency departments or general practitioners after car accidents in Denmark. Within a median of five days, post-collision participants completed questionnaires on collision characteristics, psychological distress, and socio-demographics. After 3 months they completed the Coping Strategies Questionnaire, and after 12 months a VAS scale on neck pain intensity. RESULTS: The odds for long-lasting neck pain were more than twice as high for women than for men (OR = 2.17 (95% CI: 1.40; 3.37). However, no gender difference in coping and no interaction between gender and the five coping subscales on neck pain after 12 months were found. 'Distraction' increased the odds for considerable neck pain for both men and women (OR = 1.03 (95% CI: 1.01; 1.05), 'reinterpreting' (OR = 1.03 (95% CI: 1.01; 1.06), 'catastrophizing' (OR = 1.14 (95% CI: 1.10; 1.18), and 'praying and hoping' (OR = 1.10 (95% CI: 1.05; 1.13) for each point on these scales. CONCLUSIONS: No interaction between coping and gender on neck pain was found, thus different coping strategies 3 months post-collision did not explain the different prognosis observed in men and women. Clinically relevant influence of 'catastrophizing' and 'praying and hoping' to prognosis was found, therefore we should identify patients predominantly using these strategies.