Walsh, Katie H;
Das, Ravi K;
Saladin, Michael E;
Kamboj, Sunjeev K;
(2018)
Modulation of naturalistic maladaptive memories using behavioural and pharmacological reconsolidation-interfering strategies: a systematic review and meta-analysis of clinical and ‘sub-clinical’ studies.
Psychopharmacology
, 235
pp. 2507-2527.
10.1007/s00213-018-4983-8.
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Abstract
Background: Consolidated memories can undergo enduring modification through retrieval dependent treatments that modulate reconsolidation. This represents a potentially transformative strategy for weakening or overwriting the maladaptive memories that underlie substance use and anxiety trauma related disorders. However, modulation of naturalistic maladaptive memories may be limited by ‘boundary conditions’ imposed on the reconsolidation process by the nature of these memories. / / Methods: We conducted a systematic review and meta analyses of behavioural and pharmacological studies examining retrieval dependent modulation of reward and threat related memories in (sub) clinical substance use and anxiety trauma, respectively. / / Results: Of 4938 publications assessed for eligibility, 8 studies of substance use and 10 of anxiety (phobia) and trauma related symptoms were included in the meta analyses. Overall, the findings were in the predicted direction, with most studies favouring the ‘retrieval + treatment’ condition. However, the magnitude of effects was dependent upon the nature of treatment, with pharmacological interventions showing a medium sized effect (g = 0.59, p = 0.03) and behavioural treatments, a relatively small effect (g = 0.32, p = 0.10) in studies of phobia trauma. Among studies of substance use, post retrieval behavioural interventions yielded a larger effect (g = 0.60, p < 0.001) relative to pharmacological treatments (g = − 0.03, p = 0.91), with treatment type being a statistically significant moderator (χ2(1) = 4.20, p = 0.04). / / Conclusion: Modification of naturalistic maladaptive memories during reconsolidation appears to be a viable treatment strategy for substance use and phobias trauma disorders. However, high levels of heterogeneity and methodological variation limit the strength of conclusions that can be drawn from the reviewed studies at this stage.
| Type: | Article |
|---|---|
| Title: | Modulation of naturalistic maladaptive memories using behavioural and pharmacological reconsolidation-interfering strategies: a systematic review and meta-analysis of clinical and ‘sub-clinical’ studies |
| Open access status: | An open access version is available from UCL Discovery |
| DOI: | 10.1007/s00213-018-4983-8 |
| Publisher version: | https://doi.org/10.1007/s00213-018-4983-8 |
| Language: | English |
| Additional information: | © The Author(s), 2025. This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution Licence (CC BY 4.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ |
| Keywords: | Memory Reconsolidation, Plasticity, Anxiety, Phobia, Post-traumatic stress disorder, Substance use disorder |
| UCL classification: | UCL UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences > Faculty of Brain Sciences UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences > Faculty of Brain Sciences > Div of Psychology and Lang Sciences UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences > Faculty of Brain Sciences > Div of Psychology and Lang Sciences > Clinical, Edu and Hlth Psychology |
| URI: | https://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/10215969 |
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