Mobile Attention Bias Modification Training Is a Digital Health Solution for Managing Distress in Multiple Sclerosis: A Pilot Study in Pediatric Onset

Introduction: Emotional health is important dimension of care for patients living with pediatric onset multiple sclerosis (POMS), but few options are available for stress and anxiety reduction. The high burden of interventions requiring regular in person and onsite visits for treatment are less feasible. Attention bias modification training (ABMT) is effective for anxiety reduction in adult and adolescent populations. We tested the feasibility and preliminary efficacy of ABMT delivered through a mobile gamified version as a digital emotional health tool for patients with POMS.Methods: Participants with POMS were consecutively recruited from the NYU Langone Pediatric MS Care Center and enrolled to complete a 1-month intervention with use of the Personal Zen ABMT app on their mobile personal device. Feasibility was evaluated by use of the 1-month intervention and efficacy was measured by changes in depression, anxiety, and affect.Results: A total n = 35 patients with POMS were enrolled in the study (Mage = 17.7, SD = 2.2 years, range 14–23). Feasibility criteria were met with 74% completing the full intervention time, and 100% of the sample completing at least 50% of targeted intervention use. Initial efficacy was found for a reduction in negative affect from baseline to intervention end [M = 22.88, SD = 9.95 vs. M = 19.56, SD = 7.37; t(33) = 2.47, p = 0.019]. Anxiety also significantly decreased from pre to post-intervention in adults [M = 11.82, SD = 9.90 vs. M = 7.29, SD = 7.17; t(16) = 3.88, p = 0.001] and youth [M = 51.14, SD = 19.66 vs. M = 40.86, SD = 27.48; t(13) = 3.17, p = 0.007].Conclusion: Mobile ABMT with the Personal Zen app is a feasible and accessible digital emotional health tool for patients with POMS and may have broader application for managing distress across chronic neurological conditions.

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Attention Bias Modification (ABM): Review of Effects of Multisession ABM Training on Anxiety and Threat-Related Attention in High-Anxious Individuals

Clinical Psychological Science ◽

10.1177/2167702617696359 ◽

2017 ◽

Vol 5 (4) ◽

pp. 698-717 ◽

Cited By ~ 63

Author(s):

Karin Mogg ◽

Allison M. Waters ◽

Brendan P. Bradley

Keyword(s):

Attention Bias ◽

Anxiety Reduction ◽

Attention Training ◽

Cue Exposure ◽

Directed Attention ◽

Attention Task ◽

Attention Bias Modification ◽

High Anxious ◽

Threat Avoidance ◽

Bias Modification

Attention bias modification (ABM) aims to reduce anxiety by reducing attention bias (AB) to threat; however, effects on anxiety and AB are variable. This review examines 34 studies assessing effects of multisession-ABM on both anxiety and AB in high-anxious individuals. Methods include ABM-threat-avoidance (promoting attention-orienting away from threat), ABM-positive-search (promoting explicit, goal-directed attention-search for positive/nonthreat targets among negative/threat distractors), and comparison conditions (e.g., control-attention training combining threat-cue exposure and attention-task practice without AB-modification). Findings indicate anxiety reduction often occurs during both ABM-threat-avoidance and control-attention training; anxiety reduction is not consistently accompanied by AB reduction; anxious individuals often show no pretraining AB in orienting toward threat; and ABM-positive-search training appears promising in reducing anxiety. Methodological and theoretical issues are discussed concerning ABM paradigms, comparison conditions, and AB assessment. ABM methods combining explicit goal-directed attention-search for nonthreat/positive information and effortful threat-distractor inhibition (promoting top-down cognitive control during threat-cue exposure) warrant further evaluation.

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