Dialectical Behavior Therapy for Individuals With Borderline Personality Disorder: A Systematic Review of Outcomes After One Year of Follow-Up

Summary & key facts

This review looked at whether benefits of dialectical behavior therapy (DBT) for people with borderline personality disorder lasted after treatment. The authors found 10 articles (from seven studies) and saw that improvements generally continued for about 1 to 2 years after treatment. However, few long-term randomized controlled trials exist, so how well DBT works in the long run is still not certain.

Key facts:

• The authors performed a systematic search of four databases: PsycInfo, PubMed, Scopus, and CINAHL.
• The review identified 10 articles that described seven primary research studies on DBT for borderline personality disorder.
• Both controlled and uncontrolled studies were included in the review.
• Overall, improvements seen after DBT were maintained over a follow-up period of about 1 to 2 years in the included studies.
• There is a lack of long-term follow-up data from randomized controlled trials, so evidence for DBT's long-term efficacy remains unclear.
• The paper notes that DBT already has a growing evidence base for treating borderline personality disorder, but longer-term trial data are limited.

Abstract

Dialectical behavior therapy (DBT) has a growing evidence base for treating individuals with a diagnosis of borderline personality disorder (BPD). Less is known about the long-term effects of the treatment, which is an important consideration when treating a chronic disorder such as BPD. The current systematic review explores outcomes after 1 year of follow-up for individuals who engaged in DBT. A systematic search of four databases (PsycInfo, PubMed, Scopus, CINAHL) was performed. Controlled and uncontrolled studies were included. A total of 10 articles were identified pertaining to seven primary research studies. Overall, improvements following treatment with DBT extended over the follow-up period. These findings suggest that the effects of DBT in treating BPD are maintained at least 1 to 2 years postintervention. Given a lack of long-term follow-up in randomized controlled trials, evidence for the efficacy of DBT in the longer term is unclear.

Topics

Personality Disorders and Psychopathology Psychotherapy Techniques and Applications Schizophrenia research and treatment

Categories

Clinical Psychology Psychology Social Sciences

Tags

Borderline personality disorder CINAHL Clinical psychology Dialectical behavior therapy Internal medicine Law Medicine MEDLINE Political science Psychiatry Psychological intervention Psychology Psychotherapist PsycINFO Randomized controlled trial Systematic review