Efficacy of eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR) as treatment for major depression

WorkSafeBC Evidence-Based Practice Group, Martin CW
Record ID 32018005363
English
Authors' objectives: To determine whether there is evidence to support the efficacy of eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR) for treating major depression.
Authors' results and conclusions: There is some low level, low quality preliminary evidence for the use of EMDR therapy in the treatment of major depression (only one study had low risk of bias). While in all studies EMDR demonstrated an improvement to depression outcomes compared to pre-treatment levels, the results varied in comparative studies. There is no high-quality evidence supporting the efficacy and/or effectiveness of EMDR therapy in the treatment of major depression. There is some low level, low quality preliminary evidence pointing toward the use of EMDR therapy for major depression vs. minimal/treatment that warrants future controlled study research. In general, current evidence shows that EMDR therapy is not statistically significantly more efficacious than other current therapies for the treatment of major depression.
Authors' methods: A systematic literature search was started on July 4, 2023. The search was done by employing combinations of keywords. No limitations on date of publication were implemented in any of these searches. A manual search was also planned and conducted on the references of the articles that were retrieved in full.
Details
Project Status: Completed
URL for project: https://www.worksafebc.com/en/about-us/research-services/evidence-based-medicine-and-systematic-reviews
Year Published: 2023
URL for published report: https://www.worksafebc.com/en/resources/health-care-providers/guides/efficacy-of-emdr-as-treatment-for-major-depression?lang=en&origin=s&returnurl=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.worksafebc.com%2Fen%2Fforms-resources%23sort%3DDate%26q%3DEfficacy%2520of%2520Eye%2520Movement%2520Desensitization%2520and%2520Reprocessing%2520(EMDR)%2520as%2520Treatment%2520for%2520Major%2520Depression%26f%3Alanguage-facet%3D%5BEnglish%5D%26tags%3DGuide%7C2d7eb4b30f6a4a319e0d40565c9abbab%2CHealth%2520Care%2520Provider%7C13468b0b3f074f6bade3f57ac3cdfb8e%2CSystematic%2520Review%7Cf78c29d570c14ec3b5a394385905df70&highlight=Efficacy%20of%20Eye%20Movement%20Desensitization%20and%20Reprocessing%20(EMDR)%20as%20Treatment%20for%20Major%20Depression
English language abstract: An English language summary is available
Publication Type: Mini HTA
Country: Canada
MeSH Terms
  • Depressive Disorder, Major
  • Depression
  • Eye Movement Desensitization Reprocessing
Keywords
  • Eye Movement Desensitization Reprocessing
  • depression
  • mood disorders
  • depressive disorder
Contact
Organisation Name: WorkSafeBC
Contact Address: 6591 Westminster Highway, Richmond, BC, V7C 1C6 Canada. Tel: 604-231-8417; Fax: 604-279-7698
Contact Name: ebpg@worksafebc.com
Contact Email: ebpg@worksafebc.com
Copyright: WorkSafe BC
This is a bibliographic record of a published health technology assessment from a member of INAHTA or other HTA producer. No evaluation of the quality of this assessment has been made for the HTA database.