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Intensive Short-Term Psychodynamic Psychotherapy (ISTDP) for Treatment-Resistant Persistent Physical Symptoms is a therapeutic approach designed to help patients whose physical symptoms have not responded to traditional medical or psychological treatments. These persistent physical symptoms (PPS) often include conditions such as chronic pain, fatigue, or gastrointestinal issues, where a psychological component may be involved.
ISTDP focuses on identifying and addressing unconscious emotional conflicts, which are thought to contribute to or exacerbate physical symptoms. The therapy encourages patients to recognize and express repressed emotions, such as anger, sadness, or fear, which may manifest somatically if left unresolved.
For patients with treatment-resistant PPS, ISTDP offers a focused, time-limited intervention aimed at breaking the cycle of emotional suppression and physical symptomatology. The method involves intense therapeutic engagement, fostering a direct experience of emotions in a controlled environment. Through this process, patients often gain emotional awareness and experience symptom relief.
Research on ISTDP in this population suggests that it can effectively reduce the severity of physical symptoms, improve emotional well-being, and enhance overall functioning when other treatments have not yielded significant results.
For patients with treatment-resistant PPS, ISTDP offers a focused, time-limited intervention aimed at breaking the cycle of emotional suppression and physical symptomatology. The method involves intense therapeutic engagement, fostering a direct experience of emotions in a controlled environment. Through this process, patients often gain emotional awareness and experience symptom relief.
Research on ISTDP for this population suggests that it can be effective in reducing the severity of physical symptoms, improving emotional well-being, and increasing overall functioning when other treatments have failed to produce significant results.
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| Label | Type | Description | Intervention Names |
|---|---|---|---|
| Individual intensive short term psychodynamic therapy | Other | The Individual Intensive Short-Term Psychodynamic Psychotherapy (ISTDP) arm for patients with Persistent Physical Symptoms (PPS) focuses on addressing the underlying emotional and psychological factors contributing to these chronic symptoms. In this treatment arm, participants engage in structured, one-on-one psychotherapy sessions with a trained ISTDP therapist. |
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| Name | Type | Description | Arm Group Labels | Other Names |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Individual intensive short term psychodynamic therapy | Behavioral | ISTDP aims to help patients explore and process unconscious emotions, particularly those linked to past trauma or unresolved conflicts, that may be contributing to their physical symptoms. Patients are guided to identify and express repressed feelings such as anger, grief, or fear. The therapist actively engages the patient in a focused and intensive manner, helping them to recognize emotional defenses, break through resistance, and experience these emotions directly in the therapeutic setting. |
| Measure | Description | Time Frame |
|---|---|---|
| Patient Health Questionaire-15 (PHQ-15) | Somatic symptom severity during the "last week" was assessed with the PHQ-15. Items were rated 0 ("Not bothered at all"), 1 ("Bothered a little"), or 2 ("Bothered a lot"); total scores range from 0 to 30 for women and 0-27 for men. | Lineal regression model using measurement points from from pre-treatment, 1 week before treatment and during treatment (up to 5 months) |
| Visual Analoge Scales | Visual Analoge Scales suggested by the EURONET-SOMA network (Rief et al., 2017). Somatic symptom intensity was measured from 1 ("No symptom") to 10 ("Symptom as bad as you can imagine") and somatic symptom interference from 1 ("No interference") to 10 ("Maximum interference"). | Lineal regression model using measurement points from from pre-treatment, 1 week before treatment and during treatment (up to 5 months) |
| Measure | Description | Time Frame |
|---|---|---|
| Patient Health Questionaire-9 (PHQ-9) | PHQ-9 consists of nine questions withs ratings 0-3 (0= "not at all", 3= "almost every day") on impact of depressive symptoms. Higher scores indicate worse symptom/functioning with a maximum score of 27. | Measured before treatment start and post treatment (after 16 weeks of treatment). |
| Measure | Description | Time Frame |
|---|---|---|
| Negative Effects Questionnaire (NEQ) | Participants respond to a series of statements regarding potential negative effects they may have experienced during or after therapy, typically using a Likert scale (e.g., 1 = "Not at all," to 5 = "Extremely"). The total score is computed by summing the responses, where higher scores indicate a greater frequency or severity of negative effects. | At post-treatment (after 16 weeks of treatment)] |
Inclusion Criteria:
Exclusion Criteria:
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| Facility | Status | City | State | ZIP | Country | Contacts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Stockholm University | Stockholm | Stockholm County | 10691 | Sweden |
Participants have not approved this.
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| ID | Term |
|---|---|
| D000071896 | Medically Unexplained Symptoms |
| ID | Term |
|---|---|
| D012816 | Signs and Symptoms |
| D013568 | Pathological Conditions, Signs and Symptoms |
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Open label
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|
| Generalized Anxiety Disorder 7-item scale (GAD-7) |
GAD-7 consists of seven questions with ratings 0-3 (0= "not at all", 3= "almost every day") on impact of anxiety symptoms. Higher scores indicate worse symptom/functioning functioning with a maximum score of 21. |
| Measured before treatment start and post treatment (after 16 weeks of treatment). |
| Post traumatic symptom Check List-5 (PCL-5) | PCL-5 consists of 20 questions with ratings 0-4 on impact of post traumatic symptoms. Higher scores indicate worse symptom/functioning with a maximum score of 80. | Measured before treatment start and post treatment (after 16 weeks of treatment). |
| Patient Session rating scale (with 8 additional questions) | Session Rating Scale (SRS) evaluates the therapeutic alliance and the quality of the therapy session. It consists of four items rated on a scale from 0 ("Not at all") to 10 ("Extremely") that assess various aspects of the therapy session, including the therapist's understanding of the patient, the relevance of the session, the connection between the patient and therapist, and how well the patient's needs were addressed. In the same manner 8 additional questions on experienced emotions are asked (e.g. on a scale 0-10 how much shame was experienced in the therapy session). | Each week once a week throughout 16 weeks of treatment |
| Therapist Rating after each ISTDP session | "Therapist Rating after each ISTDP session" measures several aspects of the therapeutic process and the patient's emotional response during the session. For example, on a five point Likert scale - To a very small extent" to "To a very high extent - the therapist rate the extent to which he/she focused on and/or used typical ISTDP interventions during the session. | Each week once a week throughout 16 weeks of treatment |
| Patient Health Questionaire-4 (PHQ-4) | PHQ-4 consists of four questions withs ratings 0-3 (0= "not at all", 3= "almost every day") on impact of depressive symptoms. Higher scores indicate worse symptom/functioning with a maximum score of 12. | Each week once a week throughout 16 weeks of treatment |