Abstract

OBJECTIVE: Eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR) has been successfully applied for the treatment of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). However, the use of EMDR to process traumatic events in the context of chronic metabolic conditions, such as innate metabolic disorder diagnosis or clinical management, has been poorly explored and reported so far. This work aims to outline the potential of EMDR application to treat PTSD in the context of metabolic disorders.

CASE PRESENTATION: Upon PTSD diagnosis using the Impact of Event Scale questionnaire, EMDR was applied to the parent of a child affected from galactosemia (Case 1) and an adult patient affected from phenylketonuria (Case 2), both diagnosed with PTSD, following the standard procedural steps: history-taking, preparation, assessment, desensitization, installation, body scan, closure and follow-up.

RESULTS: The two cases presented were successfully treated with EMDR, and both subjects felt more serene overall during follow-up visits.

CONCLUSIONS: The EMDR technique, targeting patients and other affected populations, may represent a promising method for psychological support in the context of innate metabolic disorder diagnosis and management, as well as for therapy compliance.