Schizophrenia psychotherapy

Editor-In-Chief: C. Michael Gibson, M.S., M.D. [1];Associate Editor(s)-in-Chief: Vindhya BellamKonda, M.B.B.S [2], Irfan Dotani

• Psychotherapy is also widely recommended and used in the treatment of schizophrenia, although services may often be confined to pharmacotherapy because of reimbursement problems or lack of training.^[1]

• Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) is used to reduce symptoms and improve related issues such as self-esteem, social functioning, and insight.
• Although the results of early trials were inconclusive, more recent reviews suggest that CBT can be an effective treatment for the psychotic symptoms of schizophrenia.^[2][3]
• Another approach is cognitive remediation therapy, a technique aimed at remediating the neurocognitive deficits sometimes present in schizophrenia. *Based on techniques of neuropsychological rehabilitation, early evidence has shown it to be cognitively effective, with some improvements related to measurable changes in brain activation as measured by fMRI.^[4]
• A similar approach known as cognitive enhancement therapy, which focuses on social cognition as well as neurocognition, has shown efficacy.^[5]

• Family Therapy or Education, which addresses the whole family system of an individual with a diagnosis of schizophrenia, has been consistently found to be beneficial, at least if the duration of intervention is longer-term.^[6][7][8]
• Aside from therapy, the impact of schizophrenia on families and the burden on carers has been recognized, with the increasing availability of self-help books on the subject.^[9][10]
• There is also some evidence for benefits from social skills training, although there have also been significant negative findings.^[11][12]

• Some studies have explored the possible benefits of music therapy and other creative therapies.^[13][14][15]

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