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Can Cognitive Behaviour Therapy Be Beneficial for Heart Failure Patients?

  • Self-Care and Health Outcomes (T Jaarsma, Section Editor)
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Abstract

This review aims to summarize the theory of cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) as well as the current evidence for whether CBT can be beneficial for patients with heart failure (HF). Depression and/or anxiety are common in HF patients. However, participation in disease management programmes does not seem to be beneficial for these problems. CBT, which focuses on the identification and changing of dysfunctional beliefs and thoughts and on behaviour therapy, is a possible treatment option. The number of CBT studies on HF is small and they are often not designed as randomized controlled trials. However, the studies on HF indicate that CBT can decrease depression as well as anxiety and suggest that relaxation exercises with elements of CBT may decrease symptom burden. Before implementation in clinical practice, more knowledge is needed about how CBT programmes should be designed, where CBT should be delivered and who should deliver CBT.

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Conflict of Interest

Johan Lundgren, Gerhard Andersson and Peter Johansson declare that they have no conflict of interest.

Human and Animal Rights and Informed Consent

This article does not contain any studies with human or animal subjects performed by any of the authors.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Social and Welfare Studies, Linköping University, Norrköping, Sweden

    Johan Lundgren

  2. Department of Behavioural Sciences and Learning, Linköping University, SE-581 83, Linköping, Sweden

    Gerhard Andersson

  3. Department of Cardiology and Department of Medical and Health Sciences, Linköping University, SE-581-85, Linköping, Sweden

    Peter Johansson

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  1. Johan Lundgren
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Correspondence to Peter Johansson.

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This article is part of the Topical Collection on Self-Care and Health Outcomes

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Lundgren, J., Andersson, G. & Johansson, P. Can Cognitive Behaviour Therapy Be Beneficial for Heart Failure Patients?. Curr Heart Fail Rep 12, 166–172 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11897-014-0244-2

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