Behaviour Research and Therapy 44 (2006) 1331–1335 Hypnotherapy and cognitive behaviour therapy of acute stress disorder: A 3-year follow-up Richard A. Bryant à , Michelle L. Moulds, Reginald D.V. Nixon, Julie Mastrodomenico, Kim Felmingham, Sally Hopwood School of Psychology, University of New South Wales, NSW 2052, Sydney, Australia Received 22 September 2004; received in revised form 29 March 2005; accepted 7 April 2005 Abstract The long-term benefits of cognitive behaviour therapy (CBT) for trauma survivors with acute stress disorder were investigated by assessing patients 3 years after treatment. Civilian trauma survivors (n ¼ 87) were randomly allocated to six sessions of CBT, CBT combined with hypnosis, or supportive counselling (SC), 69 completed treatment, and 53 were assessed 2 years post-treatment for post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) with the Clinician-Administered PTSD Scale. In terms of treatment completers, 2 CBT patients (10%), 4 CBT/hypnosis patients (22%), and 10 SC patients (63%) met PTSD criteria at 2-years follow-up. Intent-to-treat analyses indicated that 12 CBT patients (36%), 14 CBT/hypnosis patients (46%), and 16 SC patients (67%) met PTSD criteria at 2-year follow-up. Patients who received CBT and CBT/ hypnosis reported less re-experiencing and less avoidance symptoms than patients who received SC. These findings point to the long-term benefits of early provision of CBT in the initial month after trauma. r 2005 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. Keywords: Acute stress disorder; Posttraumatic stress disorder; Cognitive behaviour therapy; Treatment Introduction Most prospective studies indicate that approximately three-quarters of people who meet criteria for acute stress disorder (ASD) in the initial month after trauma exposure subsequently develop chronic post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD; for a review, see Bryant, 2003). The capacity to identify a group of high-risk trauma survivors in the initial phase after trauma exposure has led to early intervention programs that attempt to prevent PTSD in those who are most likely to suffer this condition. In an initial treatment study of ASD, five sessions of either cognitive behaviour therapy (CBT) or supportive counselling (SC) were provided to civilian trauma survivors who met criteria for ASD (Bryant, Harvey, Sackville, Dang, & Basten, 1998). CBT involved prolonged imaginal exposure, cognitive therapy (CT), and anxiety management. This study found that 17% and 67% of the CBT and SC groups, respectively, met criteria for PTSD 6-months post-trauma. A subsequent study that attempted to dismantle the effective components of CBT randomly allocated 45 participants with ARTICLE IN PRESS www.elsevier.com/locate/brat 0005-7967/$ - see front matter r 2005 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. doi:10.1016/j.brat.2005.04.007 à Corresponding author. Tel.: 61 2 93853640; fax: 61 2 93853641. E-mail address: r.bryant@unsw.edu.au (R.A. Bryant).