Home-based behavior therapy for obsessive-compulsive disorder: a case series with data

Effectiveness of One Videoconference-Based Exposure and Response Prevention Session at Home in Adjunction to Inpatient Treatment in Persons With Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder: Nonrandomized Study

BACKGROUND

Therapist-guided exposure and response prevention (ERP) for the treatment of obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) is frequently conducted within clinical settings but rarely at places where patients are usually confronted with OCD symptom-provoking situations in daily life (eg, at home).

OBJECTIVE

This study aimed to investigate patients' views on 1 ERP session at home via videoconference and its impact on treatment outcome.

METHODS

A total of 64 inpatients with OCD received 1 session of therapist-guided videoconference-based ERP at home in adjunction to a multimodal inpatient treatment between 2015 and 2020.

RESULTS

Compared with 64 age- and sex-matched controls who received a multimodal inpatient treatment without 1 session of videoconference-based ERP at home, patients who received 1 session of videoconference-based ERP in adjunction to a multimodal inpatient treatment showed stronger reductions in OCD symptom severity from admission to discharge. Before the videoconference-based ERP session, patients reported high rationale credibility and treatment expectancy. After the videoconference-based ERP session, patients reported medium-to-high positive mood as well as depth and smoothness of the session, and they perceived the working alliance as high.

CONCLUSIONS

Results highlight the importance of administering therapist-guided ERP sessions in patients' natural environment to enhance treatment response in OCD. Videoconference-based ERP as add-on to treatment as usual is, therefore, a promising approach to facilitate the application of ERP in patients' natural environment and foster the generalization of ERP conducted in clinical settings.

Predictors of treatment outcome in OCD: An interpersonal perspective

Although effective treatments for obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD) are increasingly available, a considerable percentage of patients fails to respond or relapses. Predictors associated with improved outcome of OCD were identified. However, information on interpersonal determinants is lacking. This study investigated the contribution of attachment style and expressed emotion to the outcome of exposure and response prevention (ERP), while accounting for previously documented intrapersonal (i.e., symptom severity and personality pathology) predictors. Using logistic regression analyses and multi-level modeling, we examined predictors of treatment completion and outcome among 118 adult OCD patients who entered ERP. We assessed outcome at post treatment, and at four and 13 months from treatment completion. OCD baseline severity and fearful attachment style emerged as the main moderators of treatment outcome. Severe and fearfully attached patients were more likely to dropout prematurely. The improvement of fearful clients was attenuated throughout treatment and follow-up compared to non-fearful clients. However, their symptom worsening at the long-term was also mitigated. Severe OCD patients had a more rapid symptom reduction during treatment and at follow-up, compared to less severe clients. The findings suggest that both baseline OCD severity and fearful attachment style play a role in the long-term outcome of ERP.

A Novel In-Home Relapse Prevention Treatment for Anorexia Nervosa

Anorexia nervosa (AN) is a difficult-to-treat mental illness associated with dangerous behavioral symptomatology. Interventions that augment the outcomes of existing inpatient and outpatient protocols for AN are critically needed. In-home treatments that address environmental change as a means to further promote behavior change have been applied for the care of multiple behaviorally based psychiatric illnesses, but not for eating disorders. The present study outlines the pilot application of a posthospitalization, four-session in-home relapse prevention treatment for a woman with a long history of AN. Over a 1-, 3-, and 6-month follow-up period, the patient exhibited substantial improvements in eating disorder symptomatology, sustained a healthy body mass index, and maintained positive environmental changes made by the end of treatment. The treatment was feasible and readily accepted by the patient. These positive findings suggest that more formalized research to further evaluate this novel adjunctive treatment for AN is warranted.

Community Outreach Program for Child Victims of Traumatic Events

Behavioral and cognitive behavioral treatment interventions have been shown to be effective for the treatment of trauma-related problems in children. However, many children and families in need of treatment do not have adequate access to services and do not have access to effective, evidence-based treatment services. The present article describes a community-based program that provides in-home and in-school treatment services, based on behavioral and cognitive behavioral approaches to addressing trauma-related emotional and behavioral problems in children.

How resistant is 'treatment-resistant' obsessive-compulsive disorder in youth?

OBJECTIVES

Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) is often perceived as being difficult to treat. This study aimed to test the hypothesis that treatment non-response in routine clinical practice is often due to failures in the delivery of treatment, and that most patients who are apparently treatment-resistant will respond to treatment if adequately delivered.

DESIGN

Retrospective cohort data analysis.

METHODS

Forty-three young people with severe, treatment-resistant OCD (defined as Children's Yale-Brown Obsessive-Compulsive Scale [CY-BOCS] scores ≥ 30 and non-response to previous cognitive behaviour therapy [CBT] and selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors) were referred to a specialist clinic and completed a course of manualized CBT, with (N = 21) or without (N = 22) optimization of medication. A sub-sample (N = 15) completed a semi-structured interview to determine characteristics of their previous CBT; quality was assessed according to pre-determined criteria.

RESULTS

Specialist treatment was associated with significant reductions in OCD symptoms at post-treatment with gains maintained at 3-month follow-up. At the 3-month follow-up, 58% of patients showed a meaningful clinical response (≥ 35% drop on the CY-BOCS) and 22% were in remission (≤ 12 on the CY-BOCS). Patients whose medication was optimized tended (non-significantly) to have better responses. The quality of previous CBT was assessed in a sub-group of participants and rated as inadequate in 95.5% of cases. The most common inadequacy was insufficient focus on exposure techniques.

CONCLUSIONS

These findings provide support for the notion that treatment non-response in routine practice may be due to technical treatment failures and highlight the need to disseminate good quality evidence-based treatment among this population. Research is also needed to understand factors that impede outcome to further improve response and remission rates.

PRACTITIONER POINTS

Among young people with OCD, failure to respond to treatment in routine clinical practice may often reflect the nature of the treatment received. Exposure techniques may often be overlooked in CBT for OCD, potentially resulting in poor therapeutic response. Most young people with severe and apparent treatment-resistant OCD respond to outpatient CBT incorporating E/RP. Further research is needed to establish effective methods for disseminating good quality CBT for OCD.

Internet-delivered, family-based treatment for early-onset OCD: a preliminary case series

Given the burdens of early-onset obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), limitations in the broad availability and accessibility of evidence-based care for affected youth present serious public health concerns. The growing potential for technological innovations to transform care for the most traditionally remote and underserved families holds enormous promise. This article presents the rationale, key considerations, and a preliminary case series for a promising behavioral telehealth innovation in the evidence-based treatment of early-onset OCD. We developed an Internet-based format for the delivery of family-based treatment for early-onset OCD directly to families in their homes, regardless of their geographic proximity to a mental health facility. Videoteleconferencing (VTC) methods were used to deliver real-time cognitive-behavioral therapy centering on exposure and response prevention to affected families. Participants in the preliminary case series included 5 children between the ages of 4 and 8 (M Age = 6.5) who received the Internet-delivered treatment format. All youth completed a full treatment course, all showed OCD symptom improvements and global severity improvements from pre- to posttreatment, all showed at least partial diagnostic response, and 60% no longer met diagnostic criteria for OCD at posttreatment. No participants got worse, and all mothers characterized the quality of services received as "excellent." The present work adds to a growing literature supporting the potential of VTC and related computer technology for meaningfully expanding the reach of supported treatments for OCD and lays the foundation for subsequent controlled evaluations to evaluate matters of efficacy and engagement relative to standard in-office evidence-based care.

Treatment-resistant Obsessive-compulsive Disorder in Young People: Assessment and Treatment Strategies

Cognitive behaviour therapy (CBT) and selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors have both been established as effective interventions for paediatric obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), with CBT being the recommended first-line treatment in most cases. While the majority of young people respond well to these treatments, a significant proportion remain symptomatic. Although the research on treatment-resistant OCD remains limited, increasing empirical attention is being paid to predictors of treatment outcome in young people with OCD, and efforts are being made to identify the factors that hinder recovery. This article outlines potential barriers in treatment and highlights strategies for optimising outcome, with particular focus on cognitive behavioural techniques.

Office-based vs home-based behavioral treatment for obsessive-compulsive disorder: a preliminary study

The current study investigated whether exposure with response prevention (ERP) for obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD) is more effective when administered in a participant's home or other natural environments where symptoms tend to occur, than in a therapist's office. Twenty-eight outpatients with a principal diagnosis of OCD were randomly assigned to receive ERP in their therapist's office vs. wherever their symptoms usually occur (e.g., at home, at work, in public places, in the car, etc.). Participants received 14, 90-min sessions of ERP with an individual therapist. Participants were assessed at pretreatment, post-treatment, and at 3- and 6-month follow-up. Assessments included both self-report as well as clinician-rated indicators of OCD symptom severity, depression, and functional impairment. Results suggested that participants improved significantly, regardless of where treatment occurred. There were no differences in efficacy between the home-based and office-based treatment for OCD. Implications of these findings are discussed.

Psychotherapy of obsessive-compulsive disorder and spectrum: established facts and advances, 1995-2005

Dropout rates and refractory cases persist, for reasons that remain unexplained. There are few predictor variables and few innovative approaches to deal with them. New treatment approaches must be developed to improve treatment response even for the responders. Studies show that symptoms are reduced minimally (30% 50%). No new ways of dealing with treatment-refractory cases have been developed. Studies now include more co-morbid cases, however, and their inclusion may account for some of the lack of progress in improvement rates. It needs to be seen whether patients who have one or more comorbid conditions do as well as patients who do not have comorbidity and whether the number or type of comorbid disorders accounts for treatment response. Perhaps better results would be seen with pure OCD cases. Certainly results now are more generalizable to clinical practice. Now it is important to look for alternative treatment approaches and to apply cognitive therapy to more specific problems. Cognitive therapy seems to be helpful with the disorders of the obsessive-compulsive spectrum. The attrition rate is lower when cognitive therapy is used in the treatment of hypochondriasis, and cognitive therapy also is helpful in reducing OVI , which is more severe in body dysmorphic disorder and hypochondriasis. The role of cognitive therapy in OVI needs further exploration.

Home-based cognitive-behavioral treatment of chronic, refractory obsessive-compulsive disorder can be effective. Single case analysis of four patients

Four patients with obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) were referred for home-based cognitive-behavioral therapy. All patients had failed extensive trials of behavioral and cognitive therapy and pharmacotherapy in a variety of settings (e.g., outpatient, inpatient, and day program) and were generally considered chronic and refractory to treatment. Generalization from treatment sites to natural settings in which they lived did not occur. They were evaluated at baseline, after treatment, and at an 18-month follow-up using the Yale-Brown Obsessive Compulsive Scale. Conducting end-state functioning and reliable change assessment according to the methods specified by Jacobson and Truax, the authors found that 3 patients achieved clinically significant gains after treatment and 2 patients maintained those gains at the 18-month follow-up. Data suggested better overall adjustment for 3 of the patients at follow-up. This study demonstrates the effectiveness of home-based cognitive-behavioral therapy for chronic, refractory OCD; implications for further, controlled trials are discussed.