Single-blind clinical trial of psychotherapy for treatment of psychogenic movement disorders

BackgroundPMD are disabling, but lack any generally accepted treatment strategies.Design/methodsTen patients with PMD received treatment with Psychodynamic Psychotherapy. Patients were assessed with psychiatric rating scales and the movement disorder was rated by a blinded rater with the Psychogenic Movement Disorder Rating Scale (PMDRS).ResultsTotal mean PMDRS (p=0.0195), total PMDRS function scores (p=0.0142), Hamilton depression scores (p=0.009), Beck anxiety scores (p=0.002), and GAF (p=0.0083) all improved with psychotherapeutic intervention.ConclusionsPsychotherapy and appropriate use of adjunct psychiatric medication can be a successful intervention for PMD.