Treatment of Anxiety Disorder in Adolescents (TAD-A) Version 1.0
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Brief Cognitive Therapy for Adolescent Anxiety Disorders: A Feasibility Study
IRAS ID
231040
Contact name
Mike Proven
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
University of Reading
Duration of Study in the UK
0 years, 10 months, 28 days
Research summary
Research Summary
Is it feasible to run a randomised controlled trial to compare a novel, brief psychological treatment for anxiety disorders to an existing group psychological treatment?
Anxiety disorders affect a quarter of people during their lifetime and the majority will first be affected in childhood or adolescence, often carrying on into adulthood and creating a risk for other mental health problems, such as depression and substance abuse, as well as having a negative impact on educational and occupational prospects. Although Cognitive Behavior Therapy (CBT), the gold standard psychological therapy for treating anxiety disorders, is available to adolescents, it is expensive and time consuming to deliver, resulting in lengthy waiting lists and limited access to treatment. There is a clear need for brief, low intensity treatments for anxiety disorders to be available within Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS).
This study proposes to build on the success of a brief psychological treatment for pre-adolescent children that has been successfully developed at the University of Reading and has been adopted by numerous NHS trusts. A novel, brief treatment for adolescents is being developed and is ready to be evaluated. This study will establish the feasibility of a full randomised controlled trial (RCT) to compare this new treatment to an existing adolescent group therapy, targeting adolescents between 11 and 17.5 years old who present at the University of Reading Anxiety and Depression in Young People (AnDY) Clinic with a primary diagnosis of an anxiety disorder. After an initial assessment, participants will attend up to eight weekly treatment sessions, a post-treatment assessment, followed by a three month booster session. Patient outcomes, expectations and experiences, as well as health economic factors will be assessed.
Summary of Results
The aims of this study were to evaluate a self-completed, therapist-supported online treatment for adolescent anxiety disorders in a routine clinical care setting and examine whether additional sessions for parents improved treatment outcome. Sixty adolescents (aged 13–18 years) referred for treatment of an anxiety disorder and their parent(s) were randomly allocated to begin treatment immediately or after a 16-week waitlist. Half the parents (receiving treatment immediately or after a waitlist) were allocated to receive sessions themselves. Assessments were conducted pre- and post-treatment and at 6-month follow-up.
Although around half the adolescents with anxiety disorders were free of their primary anxiety disorder 6 months after completing the program, online CBT was not significantly more effective than a waitlist condition and therefore at this stage, its use in routine clinical services is premature. Further research is required to examine treatment acceptability among adolescents, and to establish how to optimize outcomes from online treatments in routine care settings. Parent sessions did not provide significant additional benefit and it was apparent that parents typically had some level of involvement in their child’s treatment in an informal manner, suggesting that the specific parent sessions offered may have been unnecessary.REC name
South Central - Berkshire B Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
17/SC/0412
Date of REC Opinion
7 Sep 2017
REC opinion
Further Information Favourable Opinion