Exploring the Benefits of Group Psychotherapy in Reducing Alexithymia in Coronary Heart Disease Patients: A Preliminary Study

Abstract

Background: Although there is preliminary evidence that alexithymia may influence the course of coronary heart disease (CHD), there are no studies exploring attempts to modify alexithymic characteristics in cardiac patients. Method: Twenty post-myocardial infarction (MI) patients (19 men and 1 woman) were placed in a treatment group, which received weekly group psychotherapy for 4 months. Seventeen post-MI patients (16 men and 1 woman) were placed in a comparison group which received two educational sessions over a period of 1 month. All subjects completed the Toronto Alexithymia Scale (TAS) before the start of group therapy, at the end of the 4-month period, and in follow-up assessment after 6-month, 1-year, and 2-year intervals. Results: In the psychotherapy treatment group, there was a significant reduction in the mean TAS score following group therapy, which was maintained over the 2-year follow-up period. In the educational group, there were no significant changes in mean TAS scores between the initial testing and any of the follow-up intervals. On an individual basis, a decrease to a lower level of TAS scores occurred in a higher percentage of patients in the treatment group than in the educational group. Over the 2-year follow-up period, patients with decreased alexithymia following group therapy experienced fewer cardiac events (reinfarction, sudden cardiac death, or rehospitalization for rhythm disorder or severe angina) than patients whose alexithymia remained unchanged. Conclusions: The results indicate that group psychotherapy is able to decrease alexithymia and that for many patients this change can be maintained for at least 2 years. A reduction in the degree of alexithymia seems to influence favorably the clinical course of CHD.

Alexithymia: a relevant psychological variable in near-fatal asthma

“…Whether alexithymia is a cause or a consequence of recurrent episodes of NFA or AMI, once alexithymia improves, the clinical course of some patients also improves. Over a 2-yr follow-up study, BERESNEVAITE [36] observed that AMI patients whose TAS scores improved after psychotherapy suffered fewer new infarctions, sudden deaths and hospital admissions for angor pectoris and arrhythmia (18%) than the group that maintained the same TAS scores (67%). An improvement in alexithymic levels following psychotherapeutic interventions in patients with inflammatory bowel disease has also been previously reported [37].…”

Comparison of alexithymia in somatoform and chronic physical disorders: a cross sectional study

“…He found that group psychotherapy leads to increased emotional awareness and, consequently, reductions in level of alexithymia over a period of time. (26) This study concludes that association of alexithymia is high in patients with somatoform disorder and it can be considered as a risk factor to develop somatoform disorders. (27) Alexithymia is a primary personality trait that may predispose the subject to develop longer lasting somatic illnesses.…”

“…To find out whether secondary alexithymia can be influenced by any treatment modality, Beresnevaite (2000), in his study selected group of patients, in whom alexithymic features may be a state reaction to high psychological distress. He found that group psychotherapy leads to increased emotional awareness and, consequently, reductions in level of alexithymia over a period of time.…”

Gender Differences in Emotion Regulation and Relationships with Perceived Health in Patients with Rheumatoid Arthritis

“…They experience their psychological and physical health as broadly negative. For patients who deal with the adverse psychological consequences of rheumatoid arthritis by ambiguity, therapeutic trials aimed at learning more beneficial strategies of emotion regulation could be considered and evaluated, as has been done in patients with coronary heart disease (Beresnevaite, 2000).…”