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Telephone administered cognitive behaviour therapy for treatment of obsessive compulsive disorder: randomised controlled non-inferiority trial.

Lovell K, Cox D, Haddock G, Jones C, Raines D, Garvey R, Roberts C, Hadley S

Department of Nursing, Midwifery, and Social Work, University of Manchester, Manchester M13 9PL. Karina.Lovell@manchester.ac.uk

OBJECTIVES: To compare the effectiveness of cognitive behaviour therapy delivered by telephone with the same therapy given face to face in the treatment of obsessive compulsive disorder. DESIGN: Randomised controlled non-inferiority trial. SETTING: Two psychology outpatient departments in the United Kingdom. PARTICIPANTS: 72 patients with obsessive compulsive disorder. INTERVENTION: 10 weekly sessions of exposure therapy and response prevention delivered by telephone or face to face. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Yale Brown obsessive compulsive disorder scale, Beck depression inventory, and client satisfaction questionnaire. RESULTS: Difference in the Yale Brown obsessive compulsive disorder checklist score between the two treatments at six months was -0.55 (95% confidence interval -4.26 to 3.15). Patient satisfaction was high for both forms of treatment. CONCLUSION: The clinical outcome of cognitive behaviour therapy delivered by telephone was equivalent to treatment delivered face to face and similar levels of satisfaction were reported. TRIAL REGISTRATION: Current Controlled Trials ISRCTN500103984 [controlled-trials.com].

Published 27 October 2006 in BMJ, 333(7574): 883.
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