Abstract
"Background. The psychological impact of chronic conditions on patients has been the subject of much research to date, with findings suggesting a detrimental effect on wellbeing. Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) is a psychological treatment that is increasingly being used with people who have long-term health conditions. The effectiveness of ACT for promoting wellbeing for people with MS has been the source of multiple research projects to date but there has not yet been a meta-analysis conducted on the effect of ACT on the wellbeing of people with MS. Therefore, this study aims to conduct a meta-analysis to review the evidence examining the effects of ACT for the wellbeing of people with MS.
Method. A systematic review of the literature was conducted, identifying nine studies for review inclusion and seven studies that were eligible to be included in meta-analysis. Eligibility was determined by being either Randomised Control Trials/Controlled Trials, being outcome or mediation/ moderation studies, including only participants with a diagnosis of MS, and papers in English. An assessment was conducted using a quality appraisal tool to identify risks of bias within the final studies selected for review.
Results. The meta-analytic results suggest that ACT interventions can have some significant positive impact on symptoms of depression, stress, and psychological flexibility but results were not significant for anxiety and impact of MS on daily living. More general review findings suggest that ACT may be effective in improving quality of life, life expectancy, pain, fatigue, aggression and resilience. The risk of bias was assessed to be high for the majority of studies.
Discussion. This meta-analysis is the first to be conducted investigating the impact of ACT-based interventions on the wellbeing of people with MS. Future research targets and clinical recommendations are proposed. Finally, limitations of the current review as well as the quality of research incorporated for review are discussed. "