Efficacy of dialectical behavior therapy-A in adolescents with dissociative disorder in India: An open-label trial

Abstract

Introduction: Dialectical behavior therapy-A (DBT-A) is a comprehensive, evidence-based treatment for children and adolescents. To date, there is no empirically validated research for adolescents diagnosed with dissociative disorder (DD) which implies the efficacy of DBT-A. Methods: This was a hospital-based, prospective, open-label trial based on purposive sampling. It was conducted on 40 adolescents diagnosed with DD. They were divided into study group (N = 20) and treatment-as-usual (TAU; N = 20). The TAU group did not receive any psychotherapy apart from medications, but in the study group, they received pharmacotherapy along with DBT-A module (20 sessions). Multidimensional Inventory of Dissociation and Cognitive Emotion Regulation Questionnaire were used as outcome measures before and after the intervention and compared between the two groups. Results: Findings suggested improvement in the spectrum of dissociative symptoms and cognitive emotion regulations (maladaptive) in sample over 8 weeks at the postassessment phase. However, the outcome measures did not reflect significant improvement in the case of adaptive emotion regulation skills at the post-tests. Further, analyses suggested a mild-to-moderate effect size in terms of therapeutic efficacy in the study group compared to TAU. Conclusion: DBT-A intervention module is an effective addition to the management of adolescents diagnosed with DD.