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A Secondary Analysis of Sleep Quality Changes in Older Adults From a Randomized Trial of an MBSR Program

Autumn M Gallegos, J. Moynihan, Wilfred R Pigeon

Journal of Applied Gerontology August 10, 2016 DOI: 10.1177/0733464816663553 (opens in new tab)

Study at a glance

AI-extracted from the abstract
Characteristics Secondary analysis of a randomized controlled trial Peer reviewed
Sample size 200
Population Healthy older adults aged 65 and older
Intervention Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR)
Duration 8-week intervention, 6-month follow-up
Topics Meditation
Key findings MBSR participation was associated with small to medium improvements in sleep quality among older adults with baseline sleep disturbances, with larger effects for those with more severe disturbances.

Abstract

This secondary analysis examined changes in sleep quality associated with participation in a Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) program among healthy older adults. Data were collected at baseline, 8-weeks post-treatment, and a 6-month follow-up from adults aged ≥ 65 (N = 200), randomly assigned to MBSR or a waitlist control. Group differences were examined using mixed analysis of covariance with repeated measures on the total Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI) score. A small-sized, significant effect was found on overall sleep among MBSR participants with baseline PSQI scores > 5, indicative of a sleep disturbance, F(2, 80) = 4.32, p = .02, ηp2 = .05. A medium-sized, significant effect was found for MBSR participants with baseline PSQI scores ≥ 10, F(2, 28) = 3.13, p = .04, ηp2 = .10. These findings indicate that improved sleep quality for older adults who have higher levels of sleep disturbance may be associated with participation in MBSR.