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Therapist-Supported Internet-Delivered Exposure and Response Prevention for Children and Adolescents with Tourette Syndrome : A Randomized Clinical Trial

Andrén, Per LU ; Holmsved, Moa ; Ringberg, Helene ; Wachtmeister, Vera ; Isomura, Kayoko ; Aspvall, Kristina ; Lenhard, Fabian ; Hall, Charlotte L. ; Davies, E. Bethan and Murphy, Tara , et al. (2022) In JAMA Network Open 5(8).
Abstract

IMPORTANCE: The availability of behavior therapy for individuals with Tourette syndrome (TS) and chronic tic disorder (CTD) is limited.

OBJECTIVE: To determine the efficacy and cost-effectiveness of internet-delivered exposure and response prevention (ERP) for children and adolescents with TS or CTD.

DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS: This single-masked, parallel group, superiority randomized clinical trial with nationwide recruitment was conducted at a research clinic in Stockholm, Sweden. Out of 615 individuals assessed for eligibility, 221 participants meeting diagnostic criteria for TS or CTD and aged 9 to 17 years were included in the study. Enrollment began in April 2019 and ended in April 2021. Data were analyzed... (More)

IMPORTANCE: The availability of behavior therapy for individuals with Tourette syndrome (TS) and chronic tic disorder (CTD) is limited.

OBJECTIVE: To determine the efficacy and cost-effectiveness of internet-delivered exposure and response prevention (ERP) for children and adolescents with TS or CTD.

DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS: This single-masked, parallel group, superiority randomized clinical trial with nationwide recruitment was conducted at a research clinic in Stockholm, Sweden. Out of 615 individuals assessed for eligibility, 221 participants meeting diagnostic criteria for TS or CTD and aged 9 to 17 years were included in the study. Enrollment began in April 2019 and ended in April 2021. Data were analyzed between October 2021 and March 2022.

INTERVENTIONS: Participants were randomized to 10 weeks of therapist-supported internet-delivered ERP for tics (111 participants) or to therapist-supported internet-delivered education for tics (comparator group, 110 participants).

MAIN OUTCOMES AND MEASURES: The primary outcome was change in tic severity from baseline to the 3-month follow-up as measured by the Total Tic Severity Score of the Yale Global Tic Severity Scale (YGTSS-TTSS). YGTSS-TTSS assessors were masked to treatment allocation. Treatment response was operationalized as a score of 1 ("Very much improved") or 2 ("Much improved") on the Clinical Global Impression-Improvement scale.

RESULTS: Data loss was minimal, with 216 of 221 participants (97.7%) providing primary outcome data. Among randomized participants (152 [68.8%] boys; mean [SD] age, 12.1 [2.3] years), tic severity improved significantly, with a mean reduction of 6.08 points on the YGTSS-TTSS in the ERP group (mean [SD] at baseline, 22.25 [5.60]; at 3-month follow-up, 16.17 [6.82]) and 5.29 in the comparator (mean [SD] at baseline, 23.01 [5.92]; at 3-month follow-up, 17.72 [7.11]). Intention-to-treat analyses showed that the 2 groups improved similarly over time (interaction effect, -0.53; 95% CI, -1.28 to 0.22; P = .17). Significantly more participants were classified as treatment responders in the ERP group (51 of 108 [47.2%]) than in the comparator group (31 of 108 [28.7%]) at the 3-month follow-up (odds ratio, 2.22; 95% CI, 1.27 to 3.90). ERP resulted in more treatment responders at little additional cost compared with structured education. The incremental cost per quality-adjusted life-year gained was below the Swedish willingness-to-pay threshold, at which ERP had a 66% to 76% probability of being cost-effective.

CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE: Both interventions were associated with clinically meaningful improvements in tic severity, but ERP led to higher response rates at little additional cost.

TRIAL REGISTRATION: ClinicalTrials.gov identifier: NCT03916055.

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Contribution to journal
publication status
published
subject
keywords
Adolescent, Behavior Therapy/methods, Child, Cost-Benefit Analysis, Female, Humans, Internet, Male, Tics/therapy, Tourette Syndrome/diagnosis
in
JAMA Network Open
volume
5
issue
8
article number
E2225614
publisher
American Medical Association
external identifiers
  • scopus:85136278002
  • pmid:35969401
ISSN
2574-3805
DOI
10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2022.25614
language
English
LU publication?
yes
id
33084e6d-68fd-4e09-80aa-d243558a9166
date added to LUP
2022-11-29 13:46:23
date last changed
2024-06-09 23:03:30
@article{33084e6d-68fd-4e09-80aa-d243558a9166,
  abstract     = {{<p>IMPORTANCE: The availability of behavior therapy for individuals with Tourette syndrome (TS) and chronic tic disorder (CTD) is limited.</p><p>OBJECTIVE: To determine the efficacy and cost-effectiveness of internet-delivered exposure and response prevention (ERP) for children and adolescents with TS or CTD.</p><p>DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS: This single-masked, parallel group, superiority randomized clinical trial with nationwide recruitment was conducted at a research clinic in Stockholm, Sweden. Out of 615 individuals assessed for eligibility, 221 participants meeting diagnostic criteria for TS or CTD and aged 9 to 17 years were included in the study. Enrollment began in April 2019 and ended in April 2021. Data were analyzed between October 2021 and March 2022.</p><p>INTERVENTIONS: Participants were randomized to 10 weeks of therapist-supported internet-delivered ERP for tics (111 participants) or to therapist-supported internet-delivered education for tics (comparator group, 110 participants).</p><p>MAIN OUTCOMES AND MEASURES: The primary outcome was change in tic severity from baseline to the 3-month follow-up as measured by the Total Tic Severity Score of the Yale Global Tic Severity Scale (YGTSS-TTSS). YGTSS-TTSS assessors were masked to treatment allocation. Treatment response was operationalized as a score of 1 ("Very much improved") or 2 ("Much improved") on the Clinical Global Impression-Improvement scale.</p><p>RESULTS: Data loss was minimal, with 216 of 221 participants (97.7%) providing primary outcome data. Among randomized participants (152 [68.8%] boys; mean [SD] age, 12.1 [2.3] years), tic severity improved significantly, with a mean reduction of 6.08 points on the YGTSS-TTSS in the ERP group (mean [SD] at baseline, 22.25 [5.60]; at 3-month follow-up, 16.17 [6.82]) and 5.29 in the comparator (mean [SD] at baseline, 23.01 [5.92]; at 3-month follow-up, 17.72 [7.11]). Intention-to-treat analyses showed that the 2 groups improved similarly over time (interaction effect, -0.53; 95% CI, -1.28 to 0.22; P = .17). Significantly more participants were classified as treatment responders in the ERP group (51 of 108 [47.2%]) than in the comparator group (31 of 108 [28.7%]) at the 3-month follow-up (odds ratio, 2.22; 95% CI, 1.27 to 3.90). ERP resulted in more treatment responders at little additional cost compared with structured education. The incremental cost per quality-adjusted life-year gained was below the Swedish willingness-to-pay threshold, at which ERP had a 66% to 76% probability of being cost-effective.</p><p>CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE: Both interventions were associated with clinically meaningful improvements in tic severity, but ERP led to higher response rates at little additional cost.</p><p>TRIAL REGISTRATION: ClinicalTrials.gov identifier: NCT03916055.</p>}},
  author       = {{Andrén, Per and Holmsved, Moa and Ringberg, Helene and Wachtmeister, Vera and Isomura, Kayoko and Aspvall, Kristina and Lenhard, Fabian and Hall, Charlotte L. and Davies, E. Bethan and Murphy, Tara and Hollis, Chris and Sampaio, Filipa and Feldman, Inna and Bottai, Matteo and Serlachius, Eva and Andersson, Erik and Fernández De La Cruz, Lorena and Mataix-Cols, David}},
  issn         = {{2574-3805}},
  keywords     = {{Adolescent; Behavior Therapy/methods; Child; Cost-Benefit Analysis; Female; Humans; Internet; Male; Tics/therapy; Tourette Syndrome/diagnosis}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  number       = {{8}},
  publisher    = {{American Medical Association}},
  series       = {{JAMA Network Open}},
  title        = {{Therapist-Supported Internet-Delivered Exposure and Response Prevention for Children and Adolescents with Tourette Syndrome : A Randomized Clinical Trial}},
  url          = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2022.25614}},
  doi          = {{10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2022.25614}},
  volume       = {{5}},
  year         = {{2022}},
}