Question: In adults with a personality disorder how effective is Cognitive Analytic Therapy compared to any other intervention for improving patient outcomes?

Answer:

Information on the effectiveness of Cognitive Analytic Therapy (CAT) in people with borderline personality disorder was very limited. The results of one small randomised controlled trial (RCT) suggested that treatment with CAT may improve symptoms of personality disorder and experience of emotional distress, compared with usual care. However, these findings may be unreliable, due to the high proportion of participants missing from the analyses (between 24% and 65%, for different outcome measures). Results may also have limited applicability to the population specified for this evidence summary as only 68% of participants were classified as having borderline personality disorder, whilst 88% had multiple personality disorders.

Further research is needed to adequately determine the effectiveness of CAT in people with borderline personality disorder and to compare CAT to other active treatment options.

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