Insomnia is the most common sleep disorder, and is often associated with significant medical, psychological, and social disturbances. Conventional medical treatment for insomnia includes psychological and pharmacological approaches; however, long-term use of frequently prescribed medications can lead to habituation and problematic withdrawal symptoms. Therefore, herbal and other natural sleep a...

BACKGROUND The relative efficacy of different psychological treatments for chronic post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is unclear. AIMS To determine the efficacy of specific psychological treatments for chronic PTSD. METHOD In a systematic review of randomised controlled trials, eligible studies were assessed against methodological quality criteria and data were extracted and analysed. ...

Although eating disorders in children and adolescents remain a serious cause of morbidity and mortality, the evidence base for effective interventions is surprisingly weak. The adult literature is growing steadily, but this is mainly with regard to psychological therapies for bulimia nervosa and to some extent in the field of pharmacotherapy. This review summarises the recent research literatur...

BACKGROUND Empirically supported therapies for bulimia nervosa include cognitive behaviour therapy and interpersonal therapy. Whilst these treatments have been shown to be effective in multiple randomised controlled trials, little research has investigated how they are perceived by patients who receive them. This study investigated whether empirically-supported psychological therapies (ESTs) ar...

Background. Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) is a poorly understood disease with few effective treatments. Psychosocial factors are believed to contribute to the pathogenesis of IBS. Objective. To evaluate the evidence for psychological therapies in IBS treatment. Methods. We searched six medical databases through February 6, 2014, for randomized controlled trials (RCTs) of psychological therapie...

The aim of this study was to evaluate the efficacy of psychological therapies for people with intellectual disabilities (IDs) through a systematic review and meta-analysis of the current literature. A comprehensive literature search identified 143 intervention studies. Twenty-two trials were eligible for review, and 14 of these were subsequently included in the meta-analysis. Many studies did n...

BACKGROUND This is an update of the original Cochrane review first published in Issue 1, 2003, and previously updated in 2009 and 2012. Chronic pain affects many children, who report severe pain, disability, and distressed mood. Psychological therapies are emerging as effective interventions to treat children with chronic or recurrent pain. This update focuses specifically on psychological ther...