Utilisation de la thérapie Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) pour le traitement du syndrome du sein fantôme : étude pilote

Objective. This study seeks to evaluate the beneficial effects of EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing) psychotherapy in the treatment of Phantom Breast Syndrome (PBS) patients. The syndrome can be defined as the sensation of breast tissue including painful and non-painful sensations following removalby mastectomy. Method. - Eight PBS patients took part in the research and were given treatment with EMDR psychotherapy. Quantitative evaluations were carried out before the first psychotherapy session, after the final session and then three and six months after the treatment. The evaluation addressed perceived pain intensity (on a scale from 0 to 10) and perceived sensation (on a scale from 0 to 10) in the amputated breast or breasts, anxiety state (STAI-state) and depression (CES-D). Additional qualitative evaluations were also carried out with two of the patients through drawing and colouring of their breasts to express the change in mental representation of the amputated breasts between the start and the end of the EMDR treatment and of their perceptions of subjective sensations and pain in the breasts themselves. Results. - Non-parametric statistical analysis shows that following EMDR treatment, there is a significant reduction (P < .001) in sensory and painful perceptions of amputated breasts. There is a similar decrease in anxiety (P < .001) and depression (P < .01) scores. The results all remain stable after 3 and 6 months. The qualitative results of the study of two of the participants show a particularly clear change in the body image of the amputated breasts. While these findings are encouraging and show the benefit of EMDR in the treatment of PBS, they should be treated with caution due to the small sample. (C) 2015 Societe Francaise de Psychologie. Published by Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.