A PILOT STUDY OF GROUP MINDFULNESS-BASED COGNITIVE THERAPY (MBCT) FOR COMBAT VETERANS WITH POSTTRAUMATIC STRESS DISORDER (PTSD)
Anthony P. King, Thane M. Erickson, Nicholas D. Giardino, Todd Favorite, Sheila A. M. Rauch, Elizabeth Robinson, Madhur Kulkarni, Israel Liberzon
Depression and Anxiety April 17, 2013 DOI: 10.1002/da.22104 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Quasi-experimental with treatment-as-usual comparison group Randomized Pilot study Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Sample size | 37 |
| Population | Veterans with chronic combat posttraumatic stress disorder seeking treatment at a VA outpatient clinic |
| Duration | 8-week intervention |
| Topics | Anxiety Meditation PTSD |
| Keywords | Mindfulness-based cognitive therapy Psychological intervention Cognitive processing therapy Clinical psychology Group psychotherapy Cognitive behavioral therapy Cognition |
| Citations | 258 |
| Key findings | Group MBCT adapted for combat PTSD led to significant and clinically meaningful reductions in PTSD symptom severity and trauma-related cognitions compared to treatment-as-usual. |
Abstract
Background: "Mindfulness-based" interventions show promise for stress reduction in general medical conditions, and initial evidence suggests that they are accepted in trauma-exposed individuals. Mindfulness-based cognitive therapy (MBCT) shows substantial efficacy for prevention of depression relapse, but it has been less studied in anxiety disorders. This study investigated the feasibility, acceptability, and clinical outcomes of an MBCT group intervention adapted for combat posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD).
Methods: Consecutive patients seeking treatment for chronic PTSD at a VA outpatient clinic were enrolled in 8-week MBCT groups, modified for PTSD (four groups, n = 20) or brief treatment-as-usual (TAU) comparison group interventions (three groups, n = 17). Pre and posttherapy psychological assessments with clinician administered PTSD scale (CAPS) were performed with all patients, and self-report measures (PTSD diagnostic scale, PDS, and posttraumatic cognitions inventory, PTCI) were administered in the MBCT group.
Results: Intent to treat analyses showed significant improvement in PTSD (CAPS (t(19) = 4.8, P < .001)) in the MBCT condition but not the TAU conditions, and a significant Condition × Time interaction (F[1,35] = 16.4, P < .005). MBCT completers (n = 15, 75%) showed good compliance with assigned homework exercises, and significant and clinically meaningful improvement in PTSD symptom severity on posttreatment assessment in CAPS and PDS (particularly in avoidance/numbing symptoms), and reduced PTSD-relevant cognitions in PTCI (self blame).
Conclusions: These data suggest group MBCT as an acceptable brief intervention/adjunctive therapy for combat PTSD, with potential for reducing avoidance symptom cluster and PTSD cognitions. Further studies are needed to examine efficacy in a randomized controlled design and to identify factors influencing acceptability and efficacy.
In the evidence
This study is part of the evidence base for a synthesis in the library. Here is how each one recorded it.
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State of the evidence: PTSD Supports
Group mindfulness-based cognitive therapy produced significant and clinically meaningful PTSD symptom reductions compared with treatment-as-usual.
Synthesized
Comparable studies
Other experimental studies on PTSD, most cited first.
| Study | Year | Design | Participants |
|---|---|---|---|
| Resting‐state functional connectivity of the bed nucleus of the stria terminalis in post‐traumatic stress disorder and its dissociative subtype Adults with PTSD (n = 70), its dissociative subtype (n = 41), and healthy controls (n =... | 2017 | Cross-sectional resting-state fMRI study | n = 161 |
| Sensory overload and imbalance: Resting-state vestibular connectivity in PTSD and its dissociative subtype. Adults with PTSD, PTSD dissociative subtype, and healthy controls | 2017 | Cross-sectional, seed-based resting-state fMRI study | n = 141 |
| Altered Sense of Body Ownership and Agency in Posttraumatic Stress Disorder and Its Dissociative Subtype: A Rubber Hand Illusion Study Adults with PTSD (n=4), PTSD with dissociative subtype (n=6), and healthy controls (n=7) | 2018 | Case-control experimental study | n = 17 |
| Superior colliculus resting state networks in post‐traumatic stress disorder and its dissociative subtype Adults with PTSD (n = 67), its dissociative subtype (n = 41), and healthy controls (n =... | 2017 | Observational cross-sectional resting-state fMRI study | n = 158 |
| Feasibility and effects of mindfulness-based stress reduction (MBSR) for improving resilience, posttraumatic stress disorder symptoms and posttraumatic growth among military medical college students. Medical students at a military college | 2024 | Quasi-experimental with control group | n = 372 |
Citations in the library
Cited by 63
- Prospects for a clinical science of mindfulness-based intervention. American Psychologist October 1, 2015
- Mindfulness meditation training alters stress-related amygdala resting state functional connectivity: a randomized controlled trial Social Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience June 5, 2015
- The Meditative Mind: A Comprehensive Meta-Analysis of MRI Studies BioMed Research International 2015
- A Pilot Study of the Effects of Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction on Post-traumatic Stress Disorder Symptoms and Brain Response to Traumatic Reminders of Combat in Operation Enduring Freedom/Operation Iraqi Freedom Combat Veterans with Post-traumatic Stress Disorder Frontiers in Psychiatry August 25, 2017
- Effects of a Mindfulness-Based Intervention on Self-Compassion and Psychological Health Among Young Adults With a History of Childhood Maltreatment Frontiers in Psychology October 23, 2019
and 58 more in the library
Cites 13
- Mindfulness: A proposed operational definition. Clinical Psychology Science and Practice 2004
- Prevention of relapse/recurrence in major depression by mindfulness-based cognitive therapy. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology 2000
- Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy for Depression: Replication and Exploration of Differential Relapse Prevention Effects. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology 2004
- Mindfulness and acceptance: expanding the cognitive-behavioral tradition Choice Reviews Online July 1, 2005
- Metacognitive awareness and prevention of relapse in depression: Empirical evidence. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology 2002
and 8 more in the library