Does cognitive behavioral therapy alter mental defeat and cognitive flexibility in patients with panic disorder?

• Main Authors: Shinobu Nagata, Yoichi Seki, Takayuki Shibuya, Mizue Yokoo, Tomokazu Murata, Yoichi Hiramatsu, Fuminori Yamada, Hanae Ibuki, Noriko Minamitani, Naoki Yoshinaga, Muga Kusunoki, Yasushi Inada, Nobuko Kawasoe, Soichiro Adachi, Keiko Oshiro, Daisuke Matsuzawa, Yoshiyuki Hirano, Kensuke Yoshimura, Michiko Nakazato, Masaomi Iyo, Akiko Nakagawa, Eiji Shimizu
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: BMC 2018-01-01
• Series: BMC Research Notes
• Subjects: Cognitive behavioral therapy; Panic disorder; Mental defeat; Cognitive flexibility
• Online Access: http://link.springer.com/article/10.1186/s13104-018-3130-2
• ISSN: 1756-0500

Abstract Objective Mental defeat and cognitive flexibility have been studied as explanatory factors for depression and posttraumatic stress disorder. This study examined mental defeat and cognitive flexibility scores in patients with panic disorder (PD) before and after cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT), and compared them to those of a gender- and age-matched healthy control group. Results Patients with PD (n = 15) received 16 weekly individual CBT sessions, and the control group (n = 35) received no treatment. Patients completed the Mental Defeat Scale and the Cognitive Flexibility Scale before the intervention, following eight CBT sessions, and following 16 CBT sessions, while the control group did so only prior to receiving CBT (baseline). The patients’ pre-CBT Mental Defeat and Cognitive Flexibility Scale scores were significantly higher on the Mental Defeat Scale and lower on the Cognitive Flexibility Scale than those of the control group participants were. In addition, the average Mental Defeat Scale scores of the patients decreased significantly, from 22.2 to 12.4, while their average Cognitive Flexibility Scale scores increased significantly, from 42.8 to 49.5. These results suggest that CBT can reduce mental defeat and increase cognitive flexibility in patients with PD Trial registration The study was registered retrospectively in the national UMIN Clinical Trials Registry on June 10, 2016 (registration ID: UMIN000022693).