St Vincent's study tackling needle phobia

St Vincent's study tackling needle phobia

15 Dec 2021

Being scared of needles is a common but very treatable condition, as evidenced by St Vincent’s Clinical Research Unit for Anxiety & Depression (CRUfAD).

More commonly known as ‘needle-phobia’, blood-injection-injury phobia, often results in a disgust response as well as fear of needles. In addition, 75% of sufferers have a tendency to faint at the prospect of being jabbed.

At a time when rolling up our sleeves to receive the COVID-19 vaccine is key to combating the current pandemic, researchers at CRUfAD, the University of Western Australia, and Macquarie University undertook to better understand the condition and offer a potential solution for sufferers.

Led by Dr Elizabeth Mason, St Vincent’s Senior Clinical Psychologist, the study examined a novel group treatment for blood-injection-injury phobia including strategies to target disgust as well as traditional Cognitive Behavioural Therapies (CBT) to address fear and fainting.

“We know that disgust is really important in driving needle phobia but there is very little research on how to treat maladaptive disgust responses. We looked at the feasibility and effectiveness of an intervention which included novel strategies to target disgust along with traditional Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) strategies for addressing fear and fainting in blood-injection-injury phobia”, said Dr Mason.

Needle phobia is a relatively common condition, but it can be treated effectively. The pilot study found that group-based, modified CBT intervention was effective in reducing a variety of phobic responses, including fear, disgust, and fainting.

“Participants experienced significant symptom improvements. We also showed that reductions in disgust symptoms were associated with overall symptom reductions, again highlighting the importance of disgust in the treatment of this disorder”.

In 2022 CRUfAD will look at developing an online CBT program for people suffering from needle-phobia that offers effective, convenient treatment options for people who struggle when it comes time to having a jab.

To read the full research, click here.