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

Summary & key facts

This systematic review looked at studies that followed people with borderline personality disorder after they finished dialectical behavior therapy (DBT). The authors found 10 articles from 7 primary studies and reported that benefits of DBT generally lasted through at least 1 year and, in some reports, up to 2 years after treatment. However, few randomized controlled trials had long-term follow-up, so the strength of evidence about DBT’s long-term effects is still unclear.

Key facts:

• The paper is a systematic review that searched four databases: PsycInfo, PubMed, Scopus, and CINAHL.
• The review identified 10 articles that came from 7 primary research studies.
• The review included both controlled and uncontrolled studies (that is, studies with and without comparison groups).
• Overall, improvements seen after DBT were maintained during follow-up periods of at least 1 year and in some cases up to 2 years posttreatment.
• There is a lack of long-term follow-up data from randomized controlled trials, so evidence about DBT’s long-term efficacy remains unclear.

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