Efficacy of psychoeducation in bipolar patients: systematic review of randomized trials
Psychol. neurosci. (Impr.)
;
4(3): 409-416, July-Dec. 2011.
Article
in English
| LILACS
| ID: lil-617092
ABSTRACT
Bipolar disorder is a recurrent and chronic disorder with significant morbidity and mortality. Currently, pharmacological treatment is considered indispensable in bipolar disorder. However, despite advances in this area, treatment remains suboptimal. A large body of research has shown that innumerable psychosocial factors influence the emergence of mood disorders. Therefore, in addition to pharmacological strategies, psychological interventions are increasingly recognized as an essential component in the treatment of bipolar patients. Among the various approaches of psychosocial interventions, psychoeducation (PE) has been one of the most used. Thus, the aim of this review was to evaluate the efficacy of PE in the clinical course, treatment adherence, and psychosocial functioning of bipolar patients by collecting data from controlled trials that used solely PE as a psychosocial approach. A systematic review of the literature was performed in the PubMed and SCOPUS databases, without date limits, using the following keywords Psychoeducation and Bipolar disorder. We found 13 randomized controlled trials. Psychoeducation significantly improved the clinical course, treatment adherence, and psychosocial functioning of bipolar patients. It also reduced the number of relapses and recurrences per patient and increased the time to depressive, manic, hypomanic, and mixed recurrences. The number and length of hospitalizations per patient were also lower in patients who received PE. Although we found a limited number of randomized controlled trials that evaluated the efficacy of PE in bipolar disorder, the studies showed positive results in reducing relapse rates and improving long-term treatment adherence. Additionally, PE intervention improves the knowledge of the illness for both patients and caregivers to reduce their distress and improve overall social functioning.
Full text:
Available
Index:
LILACS (Americas)
Main subject:
Social Support
/
Bipolar Disorder
/
Patient Compliance
Type of study:
Controlled clinical trial
/
Systematic reviews
Language:
English
Journal:
Psychol. neurosci. (Impr.)
Journal subject:
Neurology
/
Psychology
Year:
2011
Type:
Article
Affiliation country:
Brazil
Institution/Affiliation country:
Universidade de São Paulo/BR
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