EMDR study takes a step toward trauma care after intensive care
A small trial at three NHS hospitals found that intensive-care survivors with post-traumatic stress symptoms could be identified, offered EMDR, and followed over a year. The EMERALD study provides a basis for a larger trial to find out whether the treatment improves recovery.
The research, led by Andrew Bates, followed 160 people after critical illness. Forty entered the randomized trial: 20 were offered EMDR alongside usual care, and 20 received usual care alone. The paper appeared in eClinicalMedicine on July 13.
Eighteen of those offered EMDR began treatment, and 15 completed a full course. Thirty-nine of the 40 trial participants completed the 12-month PTSD assessment. No serious adverse events linked to treatment were identified.
PTSD symptom scores fell more in the EMDR group. The researchers caution that these early estimates cannot establish effectiveness; the study was designed chiefly to test whether a larger trial could be carried out.
In its August announcement, University Hospital Southampton described the difficulty of recovering from frightening memories while also recovering physically. Intensive care can involve sedation and delirium, which make this a distinct treatment question. Andrew Bates said the next step is a larger national trial.
