Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy for Chronic Tinnitus: Evaluation of Benefits in a Large Sample of Patients Attending a Tinnitus Clinic.
Laurence McKenna, Elizabeth M. Marks, Florian Vogt
Ear and hearing 2018 DOI: 10.1097/aud.0000000000000491 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Observational pre-post study Randomized Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Sample size | 182 |
| Population | Adults with chronic and distressing tinnitus attending a real-world tinnitus clinic |
| Intervention | Mindfulness-based cognitive therapy (MBCT) |
| Duration | 8-week MBCT group, with 6-week follow-up |
| Topics | Meditation |
| Key findings | MBCT was associated with significant improvements on all outcome measures, with reliable improvements in tinnitus-related distress in 50% and psychological distress in 41.2% of patients postintervention. Changes in mindfulness and tinnitus acceptance explained unique variance in both distress outcomes. The authors argue randomized controlled trials are now needed to test whether MBCT might be an effective treatment for chronic tinnitus. |
Abstract
Mindfulness-based approaches may benefit patients with chronic tinnitus, but most evidence is from small studies of nonstandardized interventions, and there is little exploration of the processes of change. This study describes the impact of mindfulness-based cognitive therapy (MBCT) in a "real world" tinnitus clinic, using standardized MBCT on the largest sample of patients with chronic tinnitus to date while exploring predictors of change. Participants were 182 adults with chronic and distressing tinnitus who completed an 8-week MBCT group. Measures of tinnitus-related distress, psychological distress, tinnitus acceptance, and mindfulness were taken preintervention, postintervention, and at 6-week follow-up. MBCT was associated with significant improvements on all outcome measures. Postintervention, reliable improvements were detected in tinnitus-related distress in 50% and in psychological distress in 41.2% of patients. Changes in mindfulness and tinnitus acceptance explained unique variance in tinnitus-related and psychological distress postintervention. MBCT was associated with significant and reliable improvements in patients with chronic, distressing tinnitus. Changes were associated with increases in tinnitus acceptance and dispositional mindfulness. This study doubles the combined sample size of all previously published studies. Randomized controlled trials of standardized MBCT protocols are now required to test whether MBCT might offer a new and effective treatment for chronic tinnitus.
Comparable studies
Other non-randomized and open-label trials on meditation, most cited first.
| Study | Year | Design | Participants |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction in Relation to Quality of Life, Mood, Symptoms of Stress, and Immune Parameters in Breast and Prostate Cancer Outpatients Early-stage breast and prostate cancer patients | 2003 | Pre-post intervention study | n = 59 |
| Exploring self‐compassion and empathy in the context of mindfulness‐based stress reduction (MBSR) Community sample | 2010 | Pre-post intervention study | |
| Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction Lowers Psychological Distress In Medical Students Second-year medical students | 2003 | Prospective nonrandomized cohort-controlled study | n = 302 |
| Intensive meditation training, immune cell telomerase activity, and psychological mediators. Retreat participants and matched controls | 2011 | Controlled trial with wait-list control group | n = 60 |
| The Effectiveness of Mindfulness Training for Children with ADHD and Mindful Parenting for their Parents Children aged 8-12 with ADHD and their parents | 2011 | Within-group waitlist controlled trial | n = 22 |
Citations in the library
Cited by 7
- Effectiveness of Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy in Managing Chronic Tinnitus Korean Journal of Otorhinolaryngology - Head and Neck Surgery May 14, 2025
- The Mediating Role of Mindfulness and Self-Compassion in the Link between Tinnitus Distress and Anxiety. Audiology & neuro-otology March 12, 2026
- Use of mindfulness in the treatment of tinnitus: consensus based on the opinion of Brazilian experts. CoDAS 2026
- Mindfulness-based therapy for chronic tinnitus: a narrative review. Frontiers in Psychology 2026
- The Effectiveness of Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy in the Management of Tinnitus. The international tinnitus journal June 21, 2022
and 2 more in the library
Cites 13
- The benefits of being present: Mindfulness and its role in psychological well-being. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology 2003
- Mechanisms of mindfulness Journal of Clinical Psychology December 29, 2005
- Mindfulness meditation for the treatment of chronic low back pain in older adults: A randomized controlled pilot study ☆ Pain June 4, 2007
- Effects of mindfulness based stress reduction therapy on subjective bother and neural connectivity in chronic tinnitus. Otolaryngol Head Neck Surg February 24, 2015
- A randomized controlled trial of mindfulness-based cognitive therapy for treating tinnitus. Clinical Psychology & Psychotherapy May 12, 2011
and 8 more in the library