Consolidation/reconsolidation therapies for the prevention and treatment of PTSD and re-experiencing: a systematic review and meta-analysis

Astill Wright, Laurence ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8324-1229, Horstmann, Louise, Holmes, Emily A. and Bisson, Jonathan I. ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5170-1243 2021. Consolidation/reconsolidation therapies for the prevention and treatment of PTSD and re-experiencing: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Translational Psychiatry 11 , 453. 10.1038/s41398-021-01570-w

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Abstract

Translational research highlights the potential of novel 'memory consolidation/reconsolidation therapies' to treat re-experiencing symptoms and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). This systematic review and meta-analysis assessed the efficacy of so-called memory consolidation/reconsolidation therapies in randomised controlled trials (RCTs) for prevention and treatment of PTSD and symptoms of re-experiencing in children and adults (PROSPERO: CRD42020171167). RCTs were identified and rated for risk of bias. Available data was pooled to calculate risk ratios (RR) for PTSD prevalence and standardised mean differences (SMD) for PTSD/re-experiencing severity. Twenty-five RCTs met inclusion criteria (16 prevention and nine treatment trials). The methodology of most studies had a significant risk of bias. We found a large effect of reconsolidation interventions in the treatment of PTSD (11 studies, n = 372, SMD: −1.42 (−2.25 to −0.58), and a smaller positive effect of consolidation interventions in the prevention of PTSD (12 studies, n = 2821, RR: 0.67 (0.50 to 0.90). Only three protocols (hydrocortisone for PTSD prevention, Reconsolidation of Traumatic Memories (RTM) for treatment of PTSD symptoms and cognitive task memory interference procedure with memory reactivation (MR) for intrusive memories) were superior to control. There is some emerging evidence of consolidation and reconsolidation therapies in the prevention and treatment of PTSD and intrusive memories specifically. Translational research should strictly adhere to protocols/procedures describing precise reconsolidation conditions (e.g. MR) to both increase the likelihood of positive findings and more confidently interpret negative findings of putative reconsolidation agents.

Item Type:	Article
Date Type:	Publication
Status:	Published
Schools:	National Centre for Mental Health (PNCMH) Medicine MRC Centre for Neuropsychiatric Genetics and Genomics (CNGG)
Publisher:	Springer Nature
ISSN:	2158-3188
Funders:	Wellcome Trust
Date of First Compliant Deposit:	3 August 2021
Date of Acceptance:	3 August 2021
Last Modified:	04 May 2023 10:12
URI:	https://orca.cardiff.ac.uk/id/eprint/143137

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