Psychodynamic, Time-Limited Group Therapy in Rheumatic Disease &amp;ndash; a Controlled Study with Special Reference to Alexithymia

Poulsen, Annette B.

doi:10.1159/000288525

Cited by 19 publications

(23 citation statements)

References 16 publications

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“…One explanation could be that group psychotherapy, which was the focus of our inpatient program, is as helpful for alexithymic as for nonalexithymic subjects, particularly in identifying and reducing dysfunctional interpersonal behaviors. This interpretation relates well to previous research indicating the beneficial effects of group psychotherapy for alexithymic subjects with various somatic and psychiatric disorders [39, 40, 41]. …”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 90%

Alexithymia and Interpersonal Problems

Spitzer¹,

Siebel-Jürges²,

Barnow³

et al. 2005

Psychother Psychosom

262

123

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Background: Interpersonal relationships are substantially codetermined by nonverbal communication, e.g. facial affect. Given the deficits of nonverbal affect recognition and expression in alexithymia, we hypothesized that alexithymics had more interpersonal problems than nonalexithymic individuals, and that the various facets of the alexithymia construct are differentially related to interpersonal problems. Method: 149 subjects participating in an inpatient group psychotherapy program completed the Toronto Alexithymia Scale (TAS-20) and the Inventory of Interpersonal Problems (IIP-C) at the beginning of the treatment. The IIP-C was also administered to a subgroup at the end of the treatment. Results: Based on the alexithymia scores, patients were classified as low- (TAS-20 score ≤51), moderate- or high-alexithymic (TAS-20 score ≧61). High-alexithymic patients had significantly more interpersonal problems than low alexithymics, particularly in the IIP-C scales indicating hostility and social avoidance. The TAS-20 subscale difficulty describing feelings showed the highest correlations with interpersonal problems (r between 0.23 and 0.55). At the end of the treatment, the high alexithymics still scored highest on the IIP-C, but the magnitude of change in interpersonal problems did not differ across the groups. Conclusions: Our findings suggest that the interpersonal style of alexithymic individuals is characterized by a cold and socially avoidant behavior, corresponding to the predominantly insecure attachment pattern found in alexithymia. Additionally, our results indicate that group psychotherapy is as helpful for alexithymic as for nonalexithymic subjects with respect to interpersonal problems. Finally, we propose that alexithymia involves a reduced capacity to use social interactions for affect regulation.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 90%

Alexithymia and Interpersonal Problems

Spitzer¹,

Siebel-Jürges²,

Barnow³

et al. 2005

Psychother Psychosom

262

123

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“…Psychotherapy aims to alleviate difficulties through the development of a therapeutic relationship to encourage insight, and was examined in two papers, Poulson 18 and Strauss et al. 19 Analytic psychotherapy focuses on the unconscious mind and the importance of past experiences in shaping current thinking.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Psychosocial interventions as adjunct therapy for patients with rheumatoid arthritis: a systematic review

Dissanayake

Bertouch

2010

Int J of Rheum Dis

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“…Two studies [38, 41] examined the impact of STPP on alexithymia. Beresnevaite [41] found that reductions in alexithymia were associated with fewer cardiac events in 2-year follow-up of patients with coronary artery disease.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…While the treatment and control groups did not significantly differ in degree of alexithymia at posttreatment, the STPP group had no hospitalizations plus reduced reports of angina whereas the controls had 4 hospitalizations for angina. Poulsen [38] found that rheumatoid arthritis and Sjögrens’ syndrome patients treated with group STPP had lower alexithymia ratings compared to controls at posttreatment, but they did not have pretreatment measurements.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Short-Term Psychodynamic Psychotherapy for Somatic Disorders

Abbass¹,

Kisely

Kroenke

2009

Psychother Psychosom

241

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Background: Somatic symptom disorders are common, disabling and costly. Individually provided short-term psychodynamic psychotherapies (STPP) have shown promising results. However, the effectiveness of STPP for somatic symptom disorders has not been reviewed. Methods: We undertook a systematic review of randomized controlled trials and controlled before and after studies. The outcomes included psychological symptoms, physical symptoms, social-occupational function, healthcare utilization and treatment continuation. Results: A total of 23 studies met the inclusion criteria and covered a broad range of somatic disorders. Thirteen were RCTs and 10 were case series with pre-post outcome assessment. Of the included studies, 21/23 (91.3%), 11/12 (91.6%), 16/19 (76.2%) and 7/9 (77.8%) reported significant or possible effects on physical symptoms, psychological symptoms, social-occupational function and healthcare utilization respectively. Meta-analysis was possible for 14 studies and revealed significant effects on physical symptoms, psychiatric symptoms and social adjustment which were maintained in long-term follow-up. Random-effect modeling attenuated some of these relationships. There was a 54% greater treatment retention in the STPP group versus controls. Conclusion: STPP may be effective for a range of medical and physical conditions underscoring the role of patients’ emotional adjustment in overall health. Future research should include high-quality randomized and clinical effectiveness studies with attention to healthcare use and costs.

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Psychodynamic, Time-Limited Group Therapy in Rheumatic Disease – a Controlled Study with Special Reference to Alexithymia

Cited by 19 publications

References 16 publications

Alexithymia and Interpersonal Problems

Alexithymia and Interpersonal Problems

Psychosocial interventions as adjunct therapy for patients with rheumatoid arthritis: a systematic review

Short-Term Psychodynamic Psychotherapy for Somatic Disorders

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