Article Text

Protocol
Comparative efficacy and acceptability of psychosocial treatments for disruptive behaviour disorders in children and adolescents: study protocol for a systematic review and network meta-analysis
  1. Lin Zhang1,
  2. Zhihong Ren1,
  3. Xueyao Ma2,
  4. Dilana Hazer-Rau2,
  5. Guangrong Jiang1,
  6. Chunxiao Zhao1,
  7. Ziyi Zhao1,
  8. Qianzi Liu1,
  9. Fenghui Yuan1
  1. 1School of Psychology, Central China Normal University, Wuhan, China
  2. 2Department of Psychosomatic and Psychotherapy, University of Ulm, Ulm, Germany
  1. Correspondence to Professor Zhihong Ren; ren{at}ccnu.edu.cn

Abstract

Introduction Disruptive behaviour disorders are common among children and adolescents, with negative impacts on the youths, their families and society. Although multiple psychosocial treatments are effective in decreasing the symptoms of disruptive behaviour disorders, comprehensive evidence regarding the comparative efficacy and acceptability between these treatments is still lacking. Therefore, we propose a systematic review and network meta-analysis, integrating both direct and indirect comparisons to obtain a hierarchy of treatment efficacy and acceptability.

Methods and analysis The present protocol will be reported according to Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses Protocols. Ten databases, including Web of Science, PubMed, PsycINFO, MEDLINE, APA PsycArticles, Psychology and Behavioral Sciences Collection, OpenDissertations, The Cochrane Library, Embase and CINAHL, will be searched from inception for randomised controlled trials of psychosocial treatments for children and adolescents with disruptive behaviour disorders, without restrictions on language, publication year and status. The primary outcomes will be efficacy at post-treatment (severity of disruptive behaviour disorders at post-treatment) and acceptability (dropout rate for any reason) of psychosocial treatments. The secondary outcomes will involve efficacy at follow-up, severity of internalising problems and improvement of social functioning. Two authors will independently conduct the study selection and data extraction, assess the risk of bias using the revised Cochrane Collaboration’s Risk of Bias tool and evaluate the quality of the evidence using the Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development and Evaluation framework to network meta-analysis. We will perform Bayesian network meta-analyses with a random effects model. Subgroup and sensitivity analyses will be performed to evaluate the robustness of the findings.

Ethics and dissemination The research does not require ethical approval. Results are planned to be published in journals or presented at conferences. The network meta-analysis will provide information on a hierarchy of treatment efficacy and acceptability and help make a clinical treatment choice.

PROSPERO registration number CRD42020197448.

  • child & adolescent psychiatry
  • mental health
  • impulse control disorders
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Footnotes

  • Contributors LZ designed this study and drafted the protocol. ZR, XM, DH-R, GJ and FY critically revised the protocol. LZ will screen search results for inclusion, conduct data extraction and data analysis, and draft the final manuscript. XM and CZ will assist with data extraction and analysis and revise the final manuscript. ZZ and QL will screen search results for inclusion and conduct data extraction. All authors contributed to and have approved the final manuscript.

  • Funding This research was supported by the National Social Science Foundation of China (16CSH051).

  • Competing interests None declared.

  • Provenance and peer review Not commissioned; externally peer reviewed.

  • Supplemental material This content has been supplied by the author(s). It has not been vetted by BMJ Publishing Group Limited (BMJ) and may not have been peer-reviewed. Any opinions or recommendations discussed are solely those of the author(s) and are not endorsed by BMJ. BMJ disclaims all liability and responsibility arising from any reliance placed on the content. Where the content includes any translated material, BMJ does not warrant the accuracy and reliability of the translations (including but not limited to local regulations, clinical guidelines, terminology, drug names and drug dosages), and is not responsible for any error and/or omissions arising from translation and adaptation or otherwise.