A Multisite Randomized Controlled Trial of Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction in the Treatment of Posttraumatic Stress Disorder.
Lori L. Davis, Charles Whetsell, Mark B Hamner, James Carmody, Barbara O Rothbaum, Rebecca S Allen, A B P P Al Bartolucci, Steven M. Southwick, J Douglas Bremner
Psychiatric Research and Clinical Practice October 1, 2019 DOI: 10.1176/appi.prcp.20180002 (opens in new tab) via PubMed
Summary
AI-generated from the abstractBoth mindfulness-based stress reduction (MBSR) and present-centered group therapy (PCGT) led to significant improvement in PTSD symptoms among U.S. military veterans, as measured by the clinician-administered CAPS-IV scale, with no statistically significant difference between the two treatments. However, the MBSR group showed a statistically significant improvement in self-reported PTSD symptoms on the PTSD Checklist over the nine-week treatment period, though this difference was not maintained at the 16-week follow-up. The study involved 214 veterans randomly assigned to eight weeks of either 90-minute group MBSR or PCGT. Strengths include a large sample and multisite design; limitations include high attrition and low representation of women.
Study at a glance
| Characteristics | Randomized controlled trial Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Sample size | 214 |
| Population | U.S. military veterans with a diagnosis of PTSD |
| Interventions | Mindfulness-based stress reduction Present-centered group therapy |
| Duration | 8-week intervention, follow-up at week 16 |
| Key finding | Both MBSR and PCGT produced significant improvement in PTSD symptoms, with no significant difference between groups on the clinician-administered CAPS-IV scale, but MBSR showed greater improvement on self-reported PTSD symptoms during treatment. |
Abstract
Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is often difficult to treat, and many patients do not achieve full remission. Complementary and integrative health approaches, such as mindfulness meditation, are intended to be integrated with evidence-based treatment. This study examined the efficacy of mindfulness-based stress reduction (MBSR) in the treatment of PTSD in U.S. military veterans. Veterans with a diagnosis of PTSD (N=214) were randomly assigned to either 90-minute group MBSR or present-centered group therapy (PCGT) for eight weeks. Follow-up assessments were obtained at baseline and weeks 3, 6, 9 (primary endpoint), and 16. Both the MBSR and PCGT groups achieved significant improvement in PTSD as measured by the Clinician-Administered PTSD Scale for DSM-IV (CAPS-IV), with no statistically significant differences between groups. However, compared with PCGT, the MBSR group showed a statistically significant improvement in PTSD on the self-reported PTSD Checklist for DSM-IV over the nine weeks. This difference was not maintained posttreatment, at week 16. Strengths of the study include its large sample size, multisite design, active control group, single-blind outcome ratings, fidelity monitoring, large minority representation, and randomized approach. The study was limited by its high attrition rate and low representation of women. Both MBSR and PCGT appear to have beneficial effects in treating PTSD in veterans, with greater improvement observed in self-reported PTSD symptoms in the MBSR group. No differences between groups were observed on the CAPS-IV scale.