Effectiveness of internet-delivered cognitive behavioral therapy for insomnia: a systematic review and meta-analysis

Abstract

ABSTRACT This systematic review and meta-analysis aimed to assess the effectiveness of internet-delivered cognitive behavioral therapy for insomnia (ICBT-I) in the short and long term. We searched five electronic databases for studies published from June 2000 to May 2022. Our analysis included 27 studies with 8,728 participants, of which 4394 were in the experimental group and 4334 were in the control group. ICBT-I significantly improved the sleep scores of the experimental group by reducing the intensity of insomnia (ISI) (−4.32) in the post-intervention (I2 = 94%) (95% CI −6.15 to −2.48, p < 0.0001, g = 0.760) and follow-up phases (−2.92) (I2 = 95%) (95% CI −4.87 to −0.97, p < 0.0003, g = 0.622). This therapy also effectively improves short-term and long-term insomnia symptoms, including sleep onset latency, wake after sleep onset, night awakenings, sleep efficiency, and total sleep time. That holds the potential for extensive utilization across diverse populations suffering from insomnia, surpassing the limitations associated with conventional in-person therapeutic methods.