Psychiatry Research EG

Introduction A growing body of evidence supports the use of cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) for the treatment of schizophrenia. Auditory hallucinations are a common feature in schizophrenia that persists as a distressing symptom even after adequate pharmacotherapy regimen. Combining pharmacotherapy with brief CBT may reduce the severity of symptoms through decreasing the distress caused by the hallucinations. Aim The aim of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of brief individual CBT for auditory hallucinations combined with treatment as usual (TAU) compared with TAU only in a sample of Egyptian schizophrenic patients referred to the Outpatient Clinic of El Hadara University Hospital. Patients and methods A total of 40 patients diagnosed with schizophrenia referred to the outpatient clinic of El Hadara University Hospital were randomly assigned into two groups: group I received brief CBT for auditory hallucinations combined with TAU, and group II received TAU only. Brief CBT for auditory hallucinations was delivered on eight sessions of 45 min each with a frequency of once per week. Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS) was assessed before and after therapy in both groups and outcome was compared. Results On comparing the pre-assessment scores with the post-assessment scores of group I after 8 weeks of brief CBT for auditory hallucinations, a significant symptom reduction was observed for the PANSS positive (−18.31%, P < 0.001), negative (−16.67%, P < 0.001), general symptoms (−16.53%, P < 0.001), and total (−16.53%, P < 0.001) scores. Moreover, on comparing group I with group II after 8 weeks of brief CBT for auditory hallucinations, a significant symptom reduction was observed for the PANSS positive (P < 0.001), negative (P = 0.008), general symptoms (P < 0.001), and total (P < 0.001) scores. Conclusion Brief CBT for auditory hallucinations was found to be effective in reducing symptom severity in schizophrenia Keywords: schizophrenia, auditory hallucinations, brief cognitive behavioral therapy