Effectiveness of Cognitive Processing Therapy and Prolonged Exposure in the Department of Veterans Affairs

ObjectiveThis study evaluated the effectiveness of cognitive processing therapy and prolonged exposure in conditions reflective of current clinical practice within the Veterans Health Administration.MethodThis study involved a retrospective review of 2030 charts. A total of 750 veterans from 10 U.S. states who received cognitive processing therapy or prolonged exposure in individual psychotherapy were included in the study (participants in cognitive processing therapy, N = 376; participants in prolonged exposure, N = 374). The main dependent variable was self-reported posttraumatic stress disorder symptoms as measured by total scores on the Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Checklist. The study used multilevel modeling to evaluate the absolute and relative effectiveness of both treatments and determine the relationship between patient-level variables and total Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Checklist scores during treatment.ResultsCognitive processing therapy and prolonged exposure were equally effective at re...