Overview of Systematic Reviews of Mindfulness Meditation-based Interventions for People With Long-term Conditions.
Study Goal
The researchers aimed to critically evaluate systematic reviews of mindfulness meditation-based interventions (MMIs) for people with long-term health conditions (LTCs) to identify outcomes and conditions with the clearest evidence of effectiveness.
Results Summary
The study found strong support for MMIs improving depressive disorders, particularly recurrent major depression, and clear evidence for psychological well-being improvements in populations with physical conditions. However, changes in physical health measures were inconclusive, though pain acceptance and coping improved.
Population
People with long-term health conditions (LTCs), including those with depressive disorders and physical conditions.
Effective Dosage
Not specified
Duration
Not specified
Interactions
None mentioned
| Intervention | Direction | Endpoint | Population | Dosage | Impact | Claim # |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
mindfulness meditation-based interventions (MMIs) | increase | depressive disorders, particularly recurrent major depression | people with depression | - | strongly supported improvements | #1 |
mindfulness meditation-based interventions (MMIs) | increase | psychological well-being | populations with physical conditions | - | evidence for significant improvements was clear | #2 |
mindfulness meditation-based interventions (MMIs) | no change | physical health measures | populations with physical conditions | - | changes were inconclusive | #3 |
mindfulness meditation-based interventions (MMIs) | increase | pain acceptance and coping | populations with physical conditions | - | improved | #4 |
mindfulness meditation-based interventions (MMIs) | increase | psychological well-being | people with depression and a range of long-term physical conditions | - | potentially beneficial | #5 |
Context • Increasing numbers of people worldwide live with a long-term health condition (LTC). Finding new ways to support people diagnosed with LTCs is important, both to improve their health-related quality of life and to manage the demands on health services that their conditions present. This effort includes a recognition of the importance of interventions to promote self-care. A growing number of systematic reviews of mindfulness meditation-based interventions (MMIs) for people with LTCs have been published but are diverse in scope and quality. Objectives • This systematic review of reviews aims to provide a critical overview of reviews evaluating studies using MMIs and to identify outcomes and conditions for which the clearest evidence exists for MMI effectiveness. Design • The Allied and Complementary Medicine Database (AMED), Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature (CINAHL), Cochrane, Excerpta Medica dataBASE (EMBASE), Medline, PsycInfo, and Web of Science databases were searched in November 2013 for systematic reviews of MMIs for LTCs published since January 2005. Review selection and methodological quality assessment were subject to independent checking. Results • Of 3178 identified articles, 27 papers reporting on 26 reviews met the inclusion criteria. A substantially consistent picture emerged. Improvements in depressive disorders, particularly recurrent major depression, were strongly supported. Evidence for other psychological conditions was limited by lack of data. In populations with physical conditions, the evidence for significant improvements in psychological well-being was clear, regardless of population or specific mindfulness intervention. Changes in physical health measures were inconclusive; however, pain acceptance and coping were improved. Further research is needed to determine long-term and mindfulness-specific effects and to clarify the relationship between levels of mindfulness practice and outcomes. Conclusions • MMIs are potentially beneficial to people with depression and a range of long-term physical conditions, particularly in improving psychological well-being.