A randomized trial of brief dialectical behaviour therapy skills training in suicidal patients suffering from borderline disorder

Objective Evidence‐based therapies for borderline personality disorder (BPD) are lengthy and scarce. Data on brief interventions are limited, and their role in the treatment of BPD is unclear. Our aim was therefore to evaluate the clinical effectiveness of brief dialectical behaviour therapy (DBT) s...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Acta psychiatrica Scandinavica 2017-02, Vol.135 (2), p.138-148
Main Authors: McMain, Shelley F., Guimond, Tim, Barnhart, Ryan, Habinski, Liat, Streiner, David L.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Adult
Behavior modification
Behavior Therapy - methods
Borderline Personality Disorder - psychology
Dialectics
Evidence-Based Medicine
Female
Humans
Male
Middle Aged
personality disorder
Personality disorders
Prospective Studies
Psychiatry
psychotherapy
randomized controlled trial
Self-Injurious Behavior - epidemiology
Self-Injurious Behavior - psychology
self‐harm
Skill development
Suicidal Ideation
suicide
Suicide - psychology
Suicide - statistics & numerical data
Suicides & suicide attempts
Treatment Outcome
Young Adult
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Summary:Objective Evidence‐based therapies for borderline personality disorder (BPD) are lengthy and scarce. Data on brief interventions are limited, and their role in the treatment of BPD is unclear. Our aim was therefore to evaluate the clinical effectiveness of brief dialectical behaviour therapy (DBT) skills training as an adjunctive intervention for high suicide risk in patients with BPD. Method Eighty‐four out‐patients were randomized to 20 weeks of DBT skills (n = 42) or a waitlist (WL; n = 42). The primary outcome was frequency of suicidal or non‐suicidal self‐injurious (NSSI) episodes. Assessments were conducted at baseline 10, 20 and 32 weeks. Results DBT participants showed greater reductions than the WL participants on suicidal and NSSI behaviours between baseline and 32 weeks (P < 0.0001). DBT participants showed greater improvements than controls on measures of anger, distress tolerance and emotion regulation at 32 weeks. Conclusions This abbreviated intervention is a viable option that may be a useful adjunctive intervention for the treatment of high‐risk behaviour associated with the acute phase of BPD.
ISSN:0001-690X
1600-0447
DOI:10.1111/acps.12664