Eficacia de un programa de exposición con realidad virtual combinado con psicofármacos en el tratamiento de la agorafobia

Resum

ABSTRACT: Currently, some psychopharmacological treatments, cognitive behavioral therapies (CBT), and a combination of both are considered effective treatments for agoraphobia. Among psychological treatments, new therapeutic alternatives such as virtual reality exposure treatment (VRET) have been developed. The aim of this experimental study was to evaluate the efficacy of VRET combined with two antidepressant drugs (venlafaxine and paroxetine) in a sample of agoraphobia patients (N = 127), using a virtual system consisting of seven scenarios. Five types of treatment were compared: four combined treatment groups and one psychopharmacological treatment. Measures were taken at pre-treatment, posttreatment, and three-months and six-month follow-up. The dependent variables were measures of agoraphobia, anxiety, and possible depression and social anxiety comorbidity. The results showed that statistically all groups were equally effective, both at posttreatment and follow-up at three and six months, because no statistically significant differences. However, based on clinical efficacy, results showed that combined treatment groups including VRET appeared to be better than traditional techniques at decreasing agoraphobia and anxiety measures, and keeping them lower over time (follow-up at three and six months). KEY WORDS: Agoraphobia. Virtual reality. Cognitive-behavioral treatment. Pharmacological treatment. Paroxetine. Venlafaxine.