Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction: pilot study of a treatment group for patients with chronic pain in a primary care setting
Julie Beaulac, Matthew Bailly
Primary Health Care Research & Development July 1, 2015 DOI: 10.1017/s1463423614000346 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Pilot pre-post study Pilot study Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Sample size | 17 |
| Population | Adult patients with chronic pain recruited from 20 collaborative care clinics |
| Intervention | Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) |
| Duration | Eight-week program |
| Topics | Meditation |
| Key points | In a pre-post evaluation of 17 chronic pain patients, an eight-week MBSR program was associated with significant or clinically relevant improvements in pain disability, psychological distress, engagement in life activities, willingness to experience pain, and subjective current pain ratings, despite modest attendance and short program length. |
Abstract
Aim: The study objective was to evaluate an eight-week Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) treatment group for chronic pain in terms of effects on pain disability, subjective ratings of pain and psychological distress related to pain, and activity level and willingness to experience pain. This pilot study evaluated the impact of two eight-week MBSR treatment groups that were delivered in a clinic in Winnipeg, Manitoba.
Background: Chronic pain is one of the most common presenting problems in primary care settings.
Methods: Adult patients with chronic pain were recruited from 20 clinics that are part of a collaborative care programme and outcome measures were administered at baseline and programme completion.
Findings: Despite a modest attendance rate and the short length of programme, a pre–post evaluation involving 17 patients revealed significant and/or clinically relevant improvements in level of pain disability, psychological distress, engagement in life activities, willingness to experience pain, and subjective rating of current pain.
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 5
- Neurobiological Changes Induced by Mindfulness and Meditation: A Systematic Review. Biomedicines November 15, 2024
- Research Findings Using Mindfulness-Based Interventions for Chronic Pain Pain Studies and Treatment 2015
- Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) as an Alternative Therapy for Chronic Pain 2016
- Waiting for pain: effect of a mindfulness intervention during a wait situation on pain intensity. Frontiers in Pain Research 2025
- The Effects of Mindfulness Interventions on Fibromyalgia in Adults aged 65 and Older: A Window to Effective Therapy. Journal of clinical psychology in medical settings September 2023
Cites 3
- Mindfulness‐Based Stress Reduction and Mindfulness‐Based Cognitive Therapy – a systematic review of randomized controlled trials Acta Psychiatrica Scandinavica April 28, 2011
- Mindfulness-based interventions for chronic pain: a systematic review of the evidence. The Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine 2011
- An outpatient program in behavioral medicine for chronic pain patients based on the practice of mindfulness meditation: theoretical considerations and preliminary results. General Hospital Psychiatry April 1, 1982