Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy for Body Dysmorphic Disorder: A Review and Future Directions

Abstract

Theoretical and empirical rationale support cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) as the psychological treatment of choice for body dysmorphic disorder (BDD). The aim of this article is to review the evidence from published outcome studies of cognitive, behavioral, and cognitive-behavioral interventions for BDD. The literature on CBT for BDD is sparse but promising. Evidence suggests that CBT for BDD is associated with symptom improvement, generally performs better than wait-list controls, and is associated with improvement in associated features, including functioning, depression, anxiety, and delusional beliefs. However, the small number of studies and methodological limitations hamper definitive conclusions about the efficacy of CBT for BDD. We propose directions for future research.