Mindfulness and Meditation for Psoriasis: A Systematic Review
E. Bartholomew, M. Chung, S. Yeroushalmi, M. Hakimi, T. Bhutani, W. Liao
Dermatologic Therapy September 14, 2022 DOI: 10.1007/s13555-022-00802-1 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Systematic review Randomized Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Population | Patients with psoriasis |
| Intervention | Guided meditation |
| Duration | 8 or 12 weeks |
| Topics | Meditation |
| Key findings | Guided meditation improved psoriasis skin severity and patient quality of life in the short term. |
Abstract
Psoriasis is a chronic, recurrent inflammatory skin condition in which flares are commonly associated with stress. One important non-pharmacological method for managing stress in patients with psoriasis is mindfulness and/or meditation. The objective of this review is to provide an update on research studies investigating the role of mindfulness and meditation in treating psoriasis symptoms, severity, and quality of life. Of six randomized control trials (RCTs) identified, five demonstrated improvement in self-administered psoriasis area and severity index (saPASI) after 8 or 12 weeks of guided meditation. One RCT and one non-randomized control trial reported mental health benefits in psoriasis patients following guided meditation. These results suggest that meditation can be used as a tool to improve both psoriasis skin severity and patient quality of life in the short term. More research is needed to evaluate the effect of meditation on psoriasis severity and quality of life in the long term.
Comparable studies
Other systematic reviews and meta-analyses on meditation, most cited first.
| Study | Year | Design | Participants |
|---|---|---|---|
| Meditation Programs for Psychological Stress and Well-being Diverse adult clinical populations | 2014 | Meta-analysis | n = 3,515 |
| Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction for Stress Management in Healthy People: A Review and Meta-Analysis Healthy subjects | 2009 | Systematic review and meta-analysis | |
| The psychological effects of meditation: A meta-analysis. Nonclinical groups of adult meditators | 2012 | Meta-analysis | n = 163 |
| Efficacy of Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy in Prevention of Depressive Relapse Adults with recurrent depression in full or partial remission | 2016 | Meta-analysis of individual patient data from randomized controlled trials | n = 1,258 |
| Mindfulness‐Based Stress Reduction and Mindfulness‐Based Cognitive Therapy – a systematic review of randomized controlled trials | 2011 | Systematic review |
Citations in the library
Cited by 5
- Mindfulness-Based Intervention Effects on EEG and Executive Functions: A Systematic Review. Brain Sciences March 20, 2025
- Why mindfulness matters in musculoskeletal therapies: a narrative review Frontiers in Psychology October 17, 2025
- Communicating Psychosocial Support in Psoriasis Care August 26, 2026
- Efficacy of Heartfulness Meditation as Adjunctive Therapy for Moderate to Severe Psoriasis: A Randomised Controlled Trial. Indian journal of dermatology 2026
- Efficacy of a Brief Mindfulness Intervention in Underserved Individuals Receiving Inpatient Treatment for Opioid Use Disorder: A Pilot Study. Cureus June 2023
Cites 2
- Comparing impacts of meditation training in focused attention, open monitoring, and mindfulness‐based cognitive therapy on emotion reactivity and regulation: Neural and subjective evidence from a dismantling study Psychophysiology February 19, 2022
- Influence of a mindfulness meditation-based stress reduction intervention on rates of skin clearing in patients with moderate to severe psoriasis undergoing phototherapy (UVB) and photochemotherapy (PUVA). Psychosomatic Medicine 1998