European Journal of Psychotraumatology
Volume 6, 2015

Emdr for syrian refugees with posttraumatic stress disorder symptoms: Results of a pilot randomized controlled trial (Article) (Open Access)

Acarturk C.* , Konuk E. , Cetinkaya M. , Senay I. , Sijbrandij M. , Cuijpers P. , Aker T.
  • a Department of Psychology, Istanbul Sehir University, Istanbul, Turkey
  • b Institute for Behavioral Studies, Istanbul, Turkey
  • c Kilis Refugee Camp, Kilis, Turkey
  • d Department of Psychology, Istanbul Sehir University, Istanbul, Turkey
  • e Department of Clinical Psychology, VU University Amsterdam, Amsterdam, Netherlands
  • f Department of Clinical Psychology, VU University Amsterdam, Amsterdam, Netherlands
  • g School of Medicine, Department of Psychiatry, Kocaeli University, Kocaeli, Turkey

Abstract

Background: The most common mental health problems among refugees are depression and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR) is an effective treatment for PTSD. However, no previous randomized controlled trial (RCT) has been published on treating PTSD symptoms in a refugee camp population. Objective: Examining the effect of EMDR to reduce the PTSD and depression symptoms compared to a wait-list condition among Syrian refugees. Method: Twenty-nine adult participants with PTSD symptoms were randomly allocated to either EMDR sessions (n = 15) or wait-list control (n = 14). The main outcome measures were Impact of Event Scale-Revised (IES-R) and Beck Depression Inventory (BDI-II) at posttreatment and 4-week follow-up. Results: Analysis of covariance showed that the EMDR group had significantly lower trauma scores at posttreatment as compared with the wait-list group (d=1.78,95% CI: 0.92-2.64). The EMDR group also had a lower depression score after treatment as compared with the wait-list group (d= 1.14, 95% CI: 0.35-1.92). Conclusion: The pilot RCT indicated that EMDR may be effective in reducing PTSD and depression symptoms among Syrian refugees located in a camp. Larger RCTs to verify the (cost-) effectiveness of EMDR in similar populations are needed. © 2015, Ceren Acarturk et al.

Author Keywords

Randomized controlled trial Depression posttraumatic stress disorder Refugees Psychotherapy

Index Keywords

[No Keywords available]
Link
https://www.scopus.com/inward/record.uri?eid=2-s2.0-84948413834&doi=10.3402%2fejpt.v6.27414&partnerID=40&md5=3d636a243bc573c191f6c67705ae1254
DOI: 10.3402/ejpt.v6.27414
ISSN: 20008066
Cited by: 48
Original Language: English