Case report: Intensive online trauma treatment combining prolonged exposure and EMDR 2.0 in a patient with severe and chronic PTSD
An intensive trauma treatment case study conducted online for chronic PTSD utilizing EMDR 2.0 and prolonged exposure.
Article Abstract
“Introduction: Short and intensive trauma treatment programs seem promising in treating post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). However, little is known about the effects performing these types of intensive treatment programs online.
Method: At the Altrecht Academic Anxiety Centre, an in-person intensive trauma focused treatment of six days (three consecutive days in two weeks) was altered into a fully online treatment. A treatment day consisted of 90 minutes of prolonged exposure, 60 minutes of exercise, 90 minutes of Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) 2.0 and 60 minutes of psychoeducation. Mary, a patient diagnosed with chronic and severe PTSD, chronic depressive disorder (single episode, moderate to severe), a panic disorder, and an other specified personality disorder was the first patient to take part in this intensive online trauma treatment.
Results: Mary reached full remission of PTSD. The PTSD symptoms (measured on both the clinician-administered PTSD scale for DSM-5, CAPS-5 and The PTSD Checklist for DSM-5, PCL-5) showed maximum improvement and were completely absent during one month and six month follow-up. Moreover, she no longer suffered from severe depressive symptoms and did not report any general psychiatric symptoms (measured with the Beck Depression Inventory version 2, BDI-II and the Brief Symptom Inventory, BSI).
Conclusion: In conclusion, the case-report demonstrates that intensive trauma treatment online was successful in this specific case, thereby being a ‘proof of concept’ that intensive trauma treatment online is feasible. It might be promising for patients with severe and chronic PTSD and comorbid psychiatric disorders. However, further research must show if the results of this specific case can be translated to other patients with severe and chronic PTSD and comorbid psychiatric disorders.”
—Description from publisher
Article Access
Open Access
Matthijssen, S. J. M. A., & Menses, S. D. F. (2024). Case report: Intensive online trauma treatment combining prolonged exposure and EMDR 2.0 in a patient with severe and chronic PTSD. Frontiers in Psychiatry, 15: 1370358. Open access: https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyt.2024.1370358
About the Journal
“Frontiers in Psychiatry is an interdisciplinary journal that focuses on translational and ‘bench-to-beside’ approaches to improve therapeutic options for mental illness and consequently to improve patient treatment outcomes.”
—Description from publisher
Date
April 22, 2024
Creator(s)
Suzy J. M. A. Matthijssen, Sophie D. F. Menses
Topics
Anxiety/Panic/Phobias, PTSD
Practice & Methods
Integrative Therapies, Telehealth
Extent
7 pages
Publisher
Frontiers in Psychiatry
Rights
© 2024 Matthijssen and Menses. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) and the copyright owner(s) are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
APA Citation
Matthijssen, S. J. M. A., & Menses, S. D. F. (2024). Case report: Intensive online trauma treatment combining prolonged exposure and EMDR 2.0 in a patient with severe and chronic PTSD. Frontiers in Psychiatry, 15: 1370358. Open access: https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyt.2024.1370358
Audience
EMDR Therapists
Language
English
Content Type
Article, Peer-Reviewed
Access Type
External Resource, Open Access