Pain reduction in fibromyalgia syndrome through pairing transcranial direct current stimulation and mindfulness meditation: A randomized, double-blinded, sham-controlled pilot clinical trial.
Perianen Ramasawmy, Sarah Khalid, Frank Petzke, Andrea Antal
Frontiers in Medicine 2022 DOI: 10.3389/fmed.2022.908133 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Double-blinded, randomized, sham-controlled pilot clinical trial Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Sample size | 30 |
| Population | Patients with fibromyalgia syndrome (FMS), aged 33 to 70 |
| Intervention | mindfulness meditation (MM) |
| Duration | Ten daily sessions of 20 minutes; assessments at baseline, immediately after treatment, and one-month follow-up |
| Measures | pain diary |
| Topics | Meditation |
| Keywords | Brain stimulation Fibromyalgia fms |
| Key findings | Active anodal tDCS combined with mindfulness meditation did not reduce pain intensity or improve most FMS-associated symptoms compared with sham or no treatment. The authors report that the active group showed clinically meaningful and significantly higher quality of life after treatment than the other groups, with no serious adverse effects. |
Abstract
This double-blinded, randomized and sham-controlled pilot clinical trial aimed to investigate the preliminary clinical efficacy and feasibility of combining mindfulness meditation (MM) and transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) for pain and associated symptoms in patients with fibromyalgia syndrome (FMS). Included FMS patients (age: 33 to 70) were randomized to three different groups to receive either ten daily sessions of anodal tDCS over the left primary motor cortex paired with MM for 20 min (active + MM, n = 10), sham tDCS combined with MM (sham + MM, n = 10) or no intervention (NoT, n = 10). Patients in the bimodal therapy groups received a week of training in MM prior to the stimulation. Participants reported pain intensity, the primary outcome, by filling in a pain diary daily throughout the whole study. They were also evaluated for quality of life, pressure pain sensitivity, psychological wellbeing, sleep quality and sleep quantity. Assessments were performed at three time points (baseline, immediately after treatment and one-month follow-up). Participants in the active + MM group did not exhibit reduced pain intensity following the bimodal therapy compared to controls. Patients in active group demonstrated clinically meaningful and significantly higher quality of life following the therapeutic intervention than other groups. There was no significant difference among groups regarding pressure pain sensitivity, sleep parameters and psychological scales. The combined treatment was well tolerated among participants, with no serious adverse effects. This study was the first to pair these two effective non-pharmacological therapies for pain management in FMS. In the light of an underpowered sample size, repetitive anodal tDCS combined with MM did not improve pain or FMS-associated symptoms. However, patients in the active + MM group reported higher quality of life than the control groups. Studies with more participants and longer follow-ups are required to confirm our findings. [www.drks.de], identifier [DRKS00023490].
Comparable studies
Other randomized controlled trials on meditation, most cited first.
| Study | Year | Design | Participants |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alterations in Brain and Immune Function Produced by Mindfulness Meditation Healthy employees in a work environment | 2003 | Randomized controlled trial | n = 41 |
| Prevention of relapse/recurrence in major depression by mindfulness-based cognitive therapy. Recovered recurrently depressed patients | 2000 | Randomized controlled trial | n = 145 |
| Open hearts build lives: Positive emotions, induced through loving-kindness meditation, build consequential personal resources. Working adults | 2008 | Randomized controlled trial | n = 139 |
| Short-term meditation training improves attention and self-regulation Undergraduate Chinese students | 2007 | Randomized controlled trial | n = 40 |
| Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy for Depression: Replication and Exploration of Differential Relapse Prevention Effects. Recovered recurrently depressed patients | 2004 | Randomized controlled trial | n = 73 |
Citations in the library
Cited by 4
- Combination of non-invasive brain stimulation with mindfulness-based interventions for anxiety and depression symptoms: systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials. European Archives of Psychiatry and Clinical Neuroscience November 17, 2024
- Mindfulness practices and transcranial direct current stimulation: A systematic review and meta-analysis of self-reported mindfulness. Brain and Cognition May 27, 2025
- Adding Anodal Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation to Mindfulness Meditation Abolishes Mindfulness-Induced Improvements in Emotion Regulation in Fibromyalgia: A Responder Analysis. Clinical Journal of Pain November 1, 2025
- Stimulated brains and meditative minds: A systematic review on combining low intensity transcranial electrical stimulation and meditation in humans. International journal of clinical and health psychology : IJCHP February 3, 2023
Cites 13
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and 8 more in the library