Efficacy of virtual reality exposure therapy combined with two pharmacotherapies in the treatment of agoraphobia

Currently, some psychopharmacological treatments, cognitive- behavioral therapies (CBT), and a combination of both are considered effective treatments for agoraphobia. Among psychological treatments, new therapeutic alternatives such as virtual reality exposure treatment (VRET) have been developed. The aim of this experimental study was to evaluate the efcacy of VRET combined with two antidepressant drugs (venlafaxine and paroxetine) in a sample of agoraphobia patients (N = 64), using a virtual system consisting of seven scenarios. Five types of treatment were compared: four combined treatment groups and one psychopharmacological treatment. Measures were taken at pre-treatment, post- treatment, and six-month follow-up; agoraphobia and anxiety measures were used as dependent variables. Results showed that all groups were statistically effective, both at post-treatment and six-month follow-up. However, based on clinical efcacy, results showed that combined treatment groups including VRET appeared to be better than traditional techniques at decreasing agoraphobia and anxiety measures and keeping them lower over time.