Effectiveness of Predominantly Group Schema Therapy and Combined Individual and Group Schema Therapy for Borderline Personality Disorder:A Randomized Clinical Trial

IMPORTANCE: Schema therapy (ST), delivered either in an individual or group format, has been compared with other active treatments for borderline personality disorder (BPD). To our knowledge, the 2 formats have not been compared with treatment as usual (TAU) or with each other. Such comparisons help determine best treatment practices. OBJECTIVE: To evaluate whether ST is more effectively delivered in a predominantly group or combined individual and group format and whether ST is more effective than optimal TAU for BPD. DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS: In this multicenter, 3-arm randomized clinical trial conducted at 15 sites in 5 countries (Australia, Germany, Greece, the Netherlands, and the UK), outpatients aged 18 to 65 years who had BPD were recruited between June 29, 2010, and May 18, 2016, to receive either predominantly group ST (PGST), combined individual and group ST (IGST), or optimal TAU. Data were analyzed from June 4, 2019, to December 29, 2021. INTERVENTIONS: At each site, cohorts of 16 to 18 participants were randomized 1:1 to PGST vs TAU or IGST vs TAU. Both ST formats were delivered over 2 years, with 2 sessions per week in year 1 and the frequency gradually decreasing during year 2. Assessments were collected by blinded assessors. MAIN OUTCOMES AND MEASURES: The primary outcome was the change in BPD severity over time, assessed with the Borderline Personality Disorder Severity Index (BPDSI) total score. Treatment retention was analyzed as a secondary outcome using generalized linear mixed model survival analysis. RESULTS: Of 495 participants (mean [SD] age, 33.6 [9.4] years; 426 [86.2%] female), 246 (49.7%) received TAU, 125 (25.2%) received PGST, and 124 (25.0%) received IGST (1 of whom later withdrew consent). PGST and IGST combined were superior to TAU with regard to reduced BPD severity (Cohen d, 0.73; 95% CI, 0.29-1.18; P < .001). For this outcome, IGST was superior to TAU (Cohen d, 1.14; 95% CI, 0.57-1.71; P < .001) and PGST (Cohen d, 0.84; 95% CI, 0.09-1.59; P = .03), whereas PGST did not differ significantly from TAU (Cohen d, 0.30; 95% CI, −0.29 to 0.89; P = .32). Treatment retention was greater in the IGST arm than in the PGST (1 year: 0.82 vs 0.72; 2 years: 0.74 vs. 0.62) and TAU (1 year: 0.82 vs 0.73; 2 years: 0.74 vs 0.64) arms, and there was no significant difference between the TAU and PGST arms (1 year: 0.73 vs 0.72; 2 years: 0.64 vs 0.62). CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE: In this randomized clinical trial, IGST was more effective and had greater treatment retention compared with TAU and PGST. These findings suggest that IGST is the preferred ST format, with high retention and continuation of improvement in BPD severity after the completion of treatment. TRIAL REGISTRATION: trialregister.nl Identifier: NTR239

Riociguat treatment in patients with chronic thromboembolic pulmonary hypertension: Final safety data from the EXPERT registry

Objective: The soluble guanylate cyclase stimulator riociguat is approved for the treatment of adult patients with pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) and inoperable or persistent/recurrent chronic thromboembolic pulmonary hypertension (CTEPH) following Phase

Development and validation of a multicultural Spanish-language version of the Muscularity-Oriented Eating Test (MOET) in Argentina

The utility of traditional eating disorder measures in the assessment of muscularity-oriented disordered eating has been questioned. To address this limitation, the Muscularity-Oriented Eating Test (MOET) was recently developed and validated in a sample of U.S. college men. We aimed to develop a multicultural Spanish-language version of the MOET for use in Latin American samples and validate its use in a sample of Argentinian college men. Combined translation procedures were used to develop a version suitable for different Spanish-speaking populations. A total of 235 students (Mage = 23.47, SD = 5.61) participated in this study by completing a survey including the MOET. A sub-sample (n = 121) completed the MOET again after 1 week. A confirmatory factor analysis of a re-specified model of the original single-factor MOET, allowing for residual correlation between items associated to dietary rules (items 4-12), resulted in an adequate fit (χ2/df = 2.10, CFI = 0.94, TLI = 0.93, RMSEA 0.05 [90% CI = 0.04, 0.06] SRMR = 0.08). Further, the multicultural Spanish-language version of the MOET yielded evidence of internal consistency (omega = 0.83, 95% CI [0.79, 0.88], Cronbach's α = 0.83), a 1-week Intraclass Correlation Coefficient was considered for test-retest reliability (ICC = 0.82), item analysis, convergent validity with measures of eating disorder psychopathology, body dissatisfaction and weight-related behaviors, as well as for divergent validity with an unrelated construct. The availability of a multicultural Spanish-language version of the MOET may have utility in both clinical and research efforts related to muscularity-oriented disordered eating among Latino men

Continuous electron shuttling by sulfide oxidizing bacteria as a novel strategy to produce electric current

Sulfide oxidizing bacteria (SOB) are widely applied in industry to convert toxic H2S into elemental sulfur. Haloalkaliphilic planktonic SOB can remove sulfide from solution under anaerobic conditions (SOB are ‘charged’), and release electrons at an electrode (discharge of SOB). The effect of this electron shuttling on product formation and biomass growth is not known. Here, we study and demonstrate a continuous process in which SOB remove sulfide from solution in an anaerobic ‘uptake chamber’, and shuttle these electrons to theanode of an electrochemical cell, in the absence of dissolved sulfide. Two experiments over 31 and 41 days were performed. At a sulfide loading rate of 1.1 mmolS/day, electricity was produced continuously (3 A/m2) withoutdissolved sulfide in the anolyte. The main end product was sulfate (56% in experiment 1% and 78% in experiment 2), and 87% and 77% of the electrons in sulfide were recovered as electricity. It was found that the current density was dependent on the sulfide loading rate and not on the anode potential. Biological growth occurred, mainly at the anode as biofilm, in which the delta-proteobacterial genus Desulfurivibrio was dominating. Our results demonstrate a novel strategy to produce electricity from sulfide in an electrochemical system.BT/Environmental Biotechnolog

Effectiveness of Predominantly Group Schema Therapy and Combined Individual and Group Schema Therapy for Borderline Personality Disorder: A Randomized Clinical Trial

Importance: Schema therapy (ST), delivered either in an individual or group format, has been compared with other active treatments for borderline personality disorder (BPD). To our knowledge, the 2 formats have not been compared with treatment as usual (TAU) or with each other. Such comparisons help determine best treatment practices. Objective: To evaluate whether ST is more effectively delivered in a predominantly group or combined individual and group format and whether ST is more effective than optimal TAU for BPD. Design, Setting, and Participants: In this multicenter, 3-arm randomized clinical trial conducted at 15 sites in 5 countries (Australia, Germany, Greece, the Netherlands, and the UK), outpatients aged 18 to 65 years who had BPD were recruited between June 29, 2010, and May 18, 2016, to receive either predominantly group ST (PGST), combined individual and group ST (IGST), or optimal TAU. Data were analyzed from June 4, 2019, to December 29, 2021. Interventions: At each site, cohorts of 16 to 18 participants were randomized 1:1 to PGST vs TAU or IGST vs TAU. Both ST formats were delivered over 2 years, with 2 sessions per week in year 1 and the frequency gradually decreasing during year 2. Assessments were collected by blinded assessors. Main Outcomes and Measures: The primary outcome was the change in BPD severity over time, assessed with the Borderline Personality Disorder Severity Index (BPDSI) total score. Treatment retention was analyzed as a secondary outcome using generalized linear mixed model survival analysis. Results: Of 495 participants (mean [SD] age, 33.6 [9.4] years; 426 [86.2%] female), 246 (49.7%) received TAU, 125 (25.2%) received PGST, and 124 (25.0%) received IGST (1 of whom later withdrew consent). PGST and IGST combined were superior to TAU with regard to reduced BPD severity (Cohen d, 0.73; 95% CI, 0.29-1.18; P &lt;.001). For this outcome, IGST was superior to TAU (Cohen d, 1.14; 95% CI, 0.57-1.71; P &lt;.001) and PGST (Cohen d, 0.84; 95% CI, 0.09-1.59; P =.03), whereas PGST did not differ significantly from TAU (Cohen d, 0.30; 95% CI, -0.29 to 0.89; P =.32). Treatment retention was greater in the IGST arm than in the PGST (1 year: 0.82 vs 0.72; 2 years: 0.74 vs. 0.62) and TAU (1 year: 0.82 vs 0.73; 2 years: 0.74 vs 0.64) arms, and there was no significant difference between the TAU and PGST arms (1 year: 0.73 vs 0.72; 2 years: 0.64 vs 0.62). Conclusions and Relevance: In this randomized clinical trial, IGST was more effective and had greater treatment retention compared with TAU and PGST. These findings suggest that IGST is the preferred ST format, with high retention and continuation of improvement in BPD severity after the completion of treatment. Trial Registration: trialregister.nl Identifier: NTR2392. © 2022 Arntz A et al