Group cognitive-behavioral therapy versus sertraline for the treatment of children and adolescents with obsessive-compulsive disorder.

Abstract

OBJECTIVE:

To compare the effectiveness of group cognitive-behavioral therapy (GCBT) and of sertraline in treatment-naïve children and adolescents with obsessive-compulsive disorder.

METHOD:

Between 2000 and 2002, 40 subjects between 9 and 17 years old were randomized to receive GCBT (n = 20) or sertraline (n = 20). GCBT consisted of a manual-based 12-week cognitive-behavioral protocol adapted for groups, and treatment with sertraline involved medication intake for 12 weeks. Subjects were assessed before, during, and after treatment (at 1, 3, 6, and 9 months after treatment conclusion). Primary outcome measure was the Children's Yale-Brown Obsessive-Compulsive Scale. Repeated-measures analyses of variance were done.

RESULTS:

Both GCBT and sertraline conditions had significant improvement in obsessive-compulsive disorder symptoms as measured by the Children's Yale-Brown Obsessive-Compulsive Scale after 12 weeks of treatment. After the 9-month follow-up period, subjects in the GCBT condition had a significantly lower rate of symptom relapse than those in the sertraline group.

CONCLUSIONS:

The treatment with GCBT may be effective in decreasing obsessive-compulsive symptoms in childhood obsessive-compulsive disorder and should be considered as an alternative to either individual cognitive-behavioral therapy or a medication, such as sertraline. Results support the effectiveness and the maintenance of gains of GCBT in the treatment of youngsters with obsessive-compulsive disorder.

• Authors: Fernando Ramos Asbahr, Ana Regina Castillo, Ligia Montenegro Ito, Maria Rosário Dias de Oliveira Latorre, Michele Nunes Moreira, Francisco Lotufo-Neto
• Journal: Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry (J Am Acad Child Adolesc Psychiatry) Vol. 44 Issue 11 Pg. 1128-36 (Nov 2005) ISSN: 0890-8567 [Print] United States
• PMID: 16239861 (Publication Type: Comparative Study, Journal Article, Randomized Controlled Trial, Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't)

Chemical References

• Serotonin Uptake Inhibitors
• Sertraline

Topics

• Adolescent
• Child
• Cognitive Behavioral Therapy
• Female
• Humans
• Male
• Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (diagnosis, therapy)
• Outcome and Process Assessment, Health Care
• Psychotherapy, Group
• Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors (therapeutic use)
• Sertraline (therapeutic use)