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Brief Mindfulness-Based Interventions for Acute and Chronic Pain: A Systematic Review.

Journal of alternative and complementary medicine (New York, N.Y.)
March 1, 2019
Andrew S McClintock et al. (5 authors)
Journal ArticleSystematic ReviewHuman Study
Study Details

Study Goal

The researchers aimed to systematically review evidence on the effects of brief mindfulness-based interventions (BMBIs) on acute and chronic pain outcomes in humans.

Results Summary

The review found limited and inconclusive evidence overall, but BMBIs delivered by a provider and lasting more than 5 minutes showed some promise in managing acute pain. More rigorous large-scale studies are needed to recommend BMBIs as a first-line treatment for pain.

Population

Clinical (chronic pain) and nonclinical (experimentally-induced pain) samples.

Effective Dosage

Total contact time <1.5 hours, with participant-provider contact ranging from 3 to 80 minutes.

Duration

Varied by study, not specified in abstract.

Interactions

None mentioned

Extracted Claims (3)
InterventionDirectionEndpointPopulationDosageImpactClaim #
mindfulness-based interventions (MBIs)
decrease
pain management
-
-
are effective
#1
Brief MBIs (BMBIs)
neutral
safe treatment of pain
-
-
could prove to be more feasible and pragmatic
#2
BMBIs delivered by a provider and lasting more than 5 min
decrease
management of acute pain
-
-
showed some promise
#3
Abstract

OBJECTIVES: Nonpharmacologic approaches have been characterized as the preferred means to treat chronic noncancer pain by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. There is evidence that mindfulness-based interventions (MBIs) are effective for pain management, yet the typical MBI may not be feasible across many clinical settings due to resource and time constraints. Brief MBIs (BMBIs) could prove to be more feasible and pragmatic for safe treatment of pain. The aim of the present article is to systematically review evidence of BMBI's effects on acute and chronic pain outcomes in humans. METHODS: A literature search was conducted using PubMed, PsycINFO, and Google Scholar and by examining the references of retrieved articles. Articles written in English, published up to August 16, 2017, and reporting on the effects of a BMBI (i.e., total contact time <1.5 h, with mindfulness as the primary therapeutic technique) on a pain-related outcome (i.e., pain outcome, pain affect, pain-related function/quality of life, or medication-related outcome) were eligible for inclusion. Two authors independently extracted the data and assessed risk of bias. RESULTS: Twenty studies meeting eligibility criteria were identified. Studies used qualitative (n = 1), within-group (n = 3), or randomized controlled trial (n = 16) designs and were conducted with clinical (n = 6) or nonclinical (i.e., experimentally-induced pain; n = 14) samples. Of the 25 BMBIs tested across the 20 studies, 13 were delivered with audio/video recording only, and 12 were delivered by a provider (participant-provider contact ranged from 3 to 80 min). Existing evidence was limited and inconclusive overall. Nevertheless, BMBIs delivered in a particular format-by a provider and lasting more than 5 min-showed some promise in the management of acute pain. CONCLUSIONS: More rigorous large scale studies conducted with pain populations are needed before unequivocally recommending BMBI as a first-line treatment for acute or chronic pain.

Medical Subject Headings (MeSH)
Acute PainAdultChronic PainClinical Trials as TopicFemaleHumansMaleMeditationMiddle AgedMindfulness
Study Links
Quality Scores
SafetyNot Assessed
Efficacy65/10
Quality75/10
Citation Metrics
Total Citations58
Citations/Year9.7
Relative Citation Ratio4.40
NIH Percentile91.5%
Research Impact Scores
APT Score0.95
Weight Score2.36
Normalized Score0.61
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