Self-guided digital treatment with virtual reality for panic disorder and agoraphobia: a study protocol for a randomized controlled trial

BACKGROUND: Cognitive behavioral therapy is the first-line treatment for patients with panic disorder (PD) and agoraphobia (AG). Yet, many patients remain untreated due to limited treatment resources. Digital self-guided short-term treatment applications may help to overcome this issue. While some therapeutic applications are already supported by health insurance companies, data on their efficacy is limited. The current study investigates the effect of self-guided digital treatment comprising psychoeducation and virtual reality exposure therapy (VRET). METHODS: Thirty patients diagnosed with PD, AG, or panic disorder with agoraphobia (PDA) will be randomly assigned to either the experimental group (EG) or the control group (CG). Participants of both groups will undergo baseline diagnostics in the first two sessions. The subsequent treatment for the EG consists of a self-guided 6-week phase of application-based psychoeducation, one therapy session preparing for the VRET, and 4 weeks of application-based self-guided VRET. To control for the potential effects of the therapy session with the therapist, the CG will receive relaxation and stress-reduction training instead. All patients will then undergo a closing session which terminates with the post-assessment (~ 10 weeks after baseline assessment) and a follow-up assessment 6 weeks following the closing session. Symptom severity (primary outcome) will be assessed at baseline, interim, post-treatment, and follow-up. Additionally, remission status (secondary outcome) will be obtained at follow-up. Both measures will be compared between the groups. DISCUSSION: The current study aims at providing insights into the efficacy of short-term treatment applications including psychoeducation and self-guided VRET. If successful, this approach might be a feasible and promising way to ease the burden of PD, AG, and PDA on the public health system and contribute to a faster access to treatment. TRIAL REGISTRATION: ISRCTN ISRCTN10661970. Prospectively registered on 17 January 2022. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s13063-022-06366-x.