Is psychodynamic psychotherapy an effective intervention for individuals at ultra-high risk (UHR) of psychosis?: a case report

objective: to report a case and to discuss the use of psychodynamic psychotherapy (pd-p) to treat individuals at ultra-high risk (uhr) of psychosis. methods: an individual at uhr was followed up for 24 months. the baseline evaluation included a psychiatric interview, the structured interview for prodromal symptoms (sips), the scale of prodromal symptoms (sops), and neuropsychological assessment. he underwent weekly sessions of pd-p for 12 months and was followed up for 12 months after the end of pd-p. the evaluations were at baseline, after 6-, 12-, and 24-month follow-up. no medication was prescribed during the 24-month follow-up. results: the prodromal symptoms remitted. the initial total score on the sips/sops was 37 points. after the first 12 months of pd-p, there was a reduction to 12 points on the sips/sops score, which stabilized in the 24-month follow-up. there was also a slight improvement in his performance on the neuropsychological evaluations. conclusion: this case report suggests that pd-p can reduce prodromal symptoms; nevertheless, a better understanding of the specificity and efficacy of pd-p as an option of treatment for uhr individuals is needed.