The efficacy of mindfulness-based interventions in acute pain: a systematic review and meta-analysis
Alice Shires, Louise Sharpe, Jonathan N. Davies, Toby R. O. Newton-John
Pain August 1, 2020 DOI: 10.1097/j.pain.0000000000001877 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Meta-analysis Randomized Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Population | People with acute pain in randomized controlled trials |
| Intervention | Mindfulness-based interventions (MBIs) |
| Topics | Meditation |
| Key findings | The meta-analysis found no evidence that mindfulness-based interventions reduce acute pain severity or pain-related distress in clinical or experimental settings, but found beneficial effects on pain tolerance (Hedges' g = 0.68) and pain threshold (Hedges' g = 0.72) in experimental studies. Evidence quality was low or very low for most outcomes, with moderate evidence only for pain tolerance. |
Abstract
Abstract: Recent meta-analyses have shown mindfulness-based interventions (MBIs) to be effective for chronic pain, but no pooled estimates of the effect of MBIs on acute pain are available. This meta-analysis was conducted to fill that gap. A literature search was conducted in 4 databases. Articles were eligible if they reported on randomized controlled trials of MBIs for people with acute pain and one of the following outcomes: pain severity, pain threshold, pain tolerance, or pain-related distress. Two authors independently extracted the data, assessed risk of bias, and provided GRADE ratings. Twenty-two studies were included. There was no evidence of an effect of MBIs on the primary outcome of pain severity in clinical {Hedges' g = 0.52; (95% confidence interval [CI] −0.241 to 1.280)} or experimental settings (Hedges' g = 0.04; 95% CI [−0.161 to 0.247]). There was a beneficial effect of MBIs on pain tolerance (Hedges' g = 0.68; 95% CI [0.157-1.282]) and pain threshold (Hedges' g = 0.72; 95% CI [0.210-1.154]) in experimental studies. There was no evidence of an effect of MBIs compared to control for pain-related distress in clinical (Hedges' g = 0.16; 95% CI [−0.018 to 0.419]) or experimental settings (Hedges' g = 0.44; 95% CI [−0.164 to 0.419]). GRADE assessment indicated that except for pain tolerance, the data were of low or very low quality. There is moderate evidence that MBIs are efficacious in increasing pain tolerance and weak evidence for pain threshold. However, there is an absence of good-quality evidence for the efficacy of MBIs for reducing the pain severity or pain-related distress in either clinical or experimental settings.
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 16
- Co-emergence Reinforcement and Its Relevance to Interoceptive Desensitization in Mindfulness and Therapies Aiming at Transdiagnostic Efficacy Frontiers in Psychology December 22, 2020
- Mechanism of Action of Mindfulness-Based Interventions for Pain Relief-A Systematic Review. Journal of Integrative and Complementary Medicine December 1, 2024
- Mindful awareness and resilience skills for adolescents (MARS-A): a mixed-methods study of a mindfulness-based intervention for a heterogeneous adolescent clinical population. International journal of adolescent medicine and health February 1, 2024
- Mindfulness: Why it may work and why it is sure to succeed Behavioral Psychology/Psicología Conductual April 1, 2022
- Pain, mindfulness, and placebo: a systematic review. Frontiers in Integrative Neuroscience 2024
and 11 more in the library
Cites 22
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- Pain Attenuation through Mindfulness is Associated with Decreased Cognitive Control and Increased Sensory Processing in the Brain Cerebral Cortex December 15, 2011
- Effects of mindfulness and distraction on pain depend upon individual differences in pain catastrophizing: An experimental study European Journal of Pain March 26, 2014
- Brief Mindfulness-Based Interventions for Acute and Chronic Pain: A Systematic Review The Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine March 1, 2019
- Benefits of preparing for childbirth with mindfulness training: a randomized controlled trial with active comparison BMC Pregnancy and Childbirth August 14, 2018
and 17 more in the library