Efficacy of Psychological Interventions on Depression Anxiety and Somatization in Migrants: A Meta-analysis

Sambucini, Daniela; Paola, Ambrosio; Begotaraj, Edvaldo; Lai, Carlo

doi:10.1007/s10903-020-01055-w

Cited by 15 publications

(13 citation statements)

References 39 publications

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“…These positive results remained consistent at the 3-month follow-up assessment within the VBC group. The results are in line with previous RCTs and intervention studies suggesting that psychotherapeutic support offered to migrants suffering from continuous psychosocial stress is effective (Nosè et al, 2017;Sambucini et al, 2020;Turrini et al, 2017Turrini et al, , 2019Wyk & Schweitzer, 2014).…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 90%

“…A large number of previous randomized controlled trials (RCTs) and intervention studies have produced significant evidence of the efficacy of psychosocial interventions in the reduction of mental health problems among migrants, including refugees, and suggest a need for such interventions in basic health care services (Sambucini et al, 2020). Cognitive behavioural techniques and narrative exposure therapy are the most well‐established intervention methods in this context and largely focus on treatment of trauma and PTSD.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Cognitive behavioural techniques and narrative exposure therapy are the most well‐established intervention methods in this context and largely focus on treatment of trauma and PTSD. Current specialized literature, however, emphasizes the need for randomized intervention studies, investigating general mental health conditions such as depression, anxiety, somatization, and functional impairment (Sambucini et al, 2020; Giulia Turrini et al, 2017; Wyk & Schweitzer, 2014). In addition, a systematic review conducted by Ciaramella et al (2021) identified a gap in resilience interventions in the context of migration.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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New directions in the mental health care of migrants, including refugees—A randomized controlled trial investigating the efficacy of value‐based counselling

Orang

Missmahl

Thoele

et al. 2022

Clin Psychology and Psychoth

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Objective: Specialized literature has identified a need for evidence-based, lowthreshold, short-term, and intracultural psychological interventions that can be made available to migrants, including refugees, who suffer from psychological symptoms in host countries. The objective of the present study is to measure the efficacy of valuebased counselling (VBC) as such an intervention.Method: We conducted a pragmatic, rater-blinded randomized controlled trial employing a pre-post control group design to assess the efficacy of VBC based on a study sample of 103 migrants, including refugees, who resided in Germany at the time. A set of instruments was used to evaluate primary outcome measures of depression, posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms, perceived stress, generalized anxiety, and somatic complaints.Results: Per protocol analysis included 42 participants in the VBC group, and 43 in the waiting list. Compared with participants in the waiting-list group, the VBC group, following an average of four counselling sessions, experienced a clinically meaningful reduction of depression (adjusted difference 7.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 90%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 2 more Smart Citations

New directions in the mental health care of migrants, including refugees—A randomized controlled trial investigating the efficacy of value‐based counselling

Orang

Missmahl

Thoele

et al. 2022

Clin Psychology and Psychoth

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“…11 17 When torture experiences remain undisclosed, a part of the healthcare needs of torture survivors remain unaddressed, which leads to inferior healthcare outcomes. 18 Torture survivors have complex health needs due to a combination of physical and psychological symptoms they present, as well as aspects of comorbidity 19 and somatisation, 20 which may require additional medical expertise. 21 Common physical injuries from torture, such as head injuries, fractures, contractures and ear injuries, and urination and defecation problems resulting from beatings, forced positions, electric shocks, burns, sexual torture and other torture methods often require surgical treatment.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Development and evaluation of guidelines for prevention of retraumatisation in torture survivors during surgical care: protocol for a multistage qualitative study

et al. 2021

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IntroductionHealthcare professionals working in somatic departments are not trained to recognise signs of torture or provide appropriate healthcare to torture survivors, which may result in retraumatisation during surgical treatment.Methods and analysisThis protocol outlines a four-stage qualitative-method strategy for the development and evaluation of guidelines for prevention of retraumatisation of torture survivors during surgical care. The systematic search for literature review in stages 1 and 2 was conducted in August 2019 and March 2021, respectively, using nine databases. The search strategies employed in stage 1, without imposing any date limits, resulted in the inclusion of eight studies that addressed inadequate healthcare strategies associated with retraumatisation. The clinical guidelines review in stage 2 will include publications from 2000 onwards, which will be appraised using the Appraisal of Guidelines Research and Evaluation Version II instrument. Following multi-institutional recruitment in Norway, stage 3 will explore survivors’ experiences of receiving surgical treatment using indepth interviews (n=8–12), which will be audio-recorded, transcribed verbatim and analysed using the interpretative phenomenological analysis approach. In stage 4a, based on the findings from stages 1, 2 and 3, a set of clinical guidelines for preventing retraumatisation during surgical treatment will be developed. Next, the feasibility and acceptability of the guidelines will be assessed in stage 4b in three interdisciplinary focus group interviews (n=5 per group) and text condensation analyses.Ethics and disseminationThe Regional (South-East C) Committee for Medical and Health Research Ethics approved the study in May 2021 (#227624). In stages 3 and 4, an informational letter and an informed consent form will be distributed to the participants to sign before the interview. The study results will be disseminated through publications, conference presentations, and national and local public forums to healthcare professionals, service managers, policymakers and refugee-supporting agencies.

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Traumatic Life Events and Association With Depression, Anxiety, and Somatization Symptoms in Female Refugees

et al. 2023

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ImportanceDifferent types of traumatic life events have varying impacts on symptoms of depression, anxiety, and somatization. For women from areas of the world experiencing war and humanitarian crises, who have experienced cumulative trauma exposure during war and forced migration, it is not known whether cumulative trauma or particular events have the greatest impact on symptoms.ObjectiveTo examine which traumatic life events are associated with depression, anxiety, and somatization symptoms, compared with the cumulative amount, in a sample of female refugees.Design, Setting, and ParticipantsFor this cross-sectional study, data were collected in 2016 as a part of The Study on Female Refugees. The current analysis was conducted in 2022 to 2023. This multicenter study covered 5 provinces in Germany. Participants were recruited at reception centers for refugees. Women volunteered to participate and to be interviewed after information seminars at the different centers.ExposureTraumatic life events experienced by refugees from areas of the world experiencing war and humanitarian crises.Main Outcomes and MeasuresDemographic variables (age, country of origin, religion, education, relationship status, and children), traumatic and adverse life events, and self-reported depression, anxiety, and somatization symptoms were measured. Random forest regressions simultaneously examined the importance of these variables on symptom scores. Follow-up exploratory mediation models tested potential associative pathways between the identified variables of importance.ResultsFor the final sample of 620 refugee women (mean [SD] age, 32.34 [10.35] years), family violence was most associated with depression (mean [SD] variable of importance [VIM], 2.93 [0.09]), anxiety (mean [SD] VIM, 4.15 [0.11]), and somatization (mean [SD] VIM, 3.99 [0.15]), even though it was less common than other traumatic experiences, including war, accidents, hunger, or lack of housing. Other factors, such as childhood sexual abuse, injury, near-death experiences, and lack of access to health care, were also important. Follow-up analyses showed partial mediation effects between these factors in their association with symptoms, supporting the unique importance of family violence in understanding mental health.Conclusions and RelevanceThe findings of this cross-sectional study of refugee women who experienced multiple severe traumas related to war in their home countries and danger encountered during their migration suggest that family violence was key to their current mental health problems. Culturally sensitive assessment and treatment need to place special emphasis on these family dynamics.

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Efficacy of Psychological Interventions on Depression Anxiety and Somatization in Migrants: A Meta-analysis

Cited by 15 publications

References 39 publications

New directions in the mental health care of migrants, including refugees—A randomized controlled trial investigating the efficacy of value‐based counselling

New directions in the mental health care of migrants, including refugees—A randomized controlled trial investigating the efficacy of value‐based counselling

Development and evaluation of guidelines for prevention of retraumatisation in torture survivors during surgical care: protocol for a multistage qualitative study

Traumatic Life Events and Association With Depression, Anxiety, and Somatization Symptoms in Female Refugees

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