The Effectiveness of Emotional Freedom Techniques in the Treatment of Posttraumatic Stress Disorder: A Meta-Analysis

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• 作者：Brenda Sebastian ; MPsych.¹ ; Jerrod Nelms ; PhD² ; ^{bjanfield@yahoo.com}
• 关键词：Emotional freedom techniques ; posttraumatic stress disorder ; veteran
• 刊名：EXPLORE: The Journal of Science and Healing
• 出版年：2017
• 出版时间：January-February 2017
• 年：2017
• 卷：13
• 期：1
• 页码：16-25
• 全文大小：213 K
• 卷排序：13

文摘

Over the past two decades, growing numbers of clinicians have been utilizing emotional freedom techniques (EFT) in the treatment of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), anxiety, and depression. Randomized controlled trials (RCTs) have shown encouraging outcomes for all three conditions.ObjectiveTo assess the efficacy of EFT in treating PTSD by conducting a meta-analysis of existing RCTs.MethodsA systematic review of databases was undertaken to identify RCTs investigating EFT in the treatment of PTSD. The RCTs were evaluated for quality using evidence-based standards published by the American Psychological Association Division 12 Task Force on Empirically Validated Therapies. Those meeting the criteria were assessed using a meta-analysis that synthesized the data to determine effect sizes. While uncontrolled outcome studies were excluded, they were examined for clinical implications of treatment that can extend knowledge of this condition.ResultsSeven randomized controlled trials were found to meet the criteria and were included in the meta-analysis. A large treatment effect was found, with a weighted Cohen׳s d = 2.96 (95% CI: 1.96–3.97, P < .001) for the studies that compared EFT to usual care or a waitlist. No treatment effect differences were found in studies comparing EFT to other evidence-based therapies such as eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR; 1 study) and cognitive behavior therapy (CBT; 1 study).ConclusionsThe analysis of existing studies showed that a series of 4–10 EFT sessions is an efficacious treatment for PTSD with a variety of populations. The studies examined reported no adverse effects from EFT interventions and showed that it can be used both on a self-help basis and as a primary evidence-based treatment for PTSD.