Effects of Meditation on Depression among Patients Undergoing Hemodialysis

Background: Considering the increasing prevalence of psychological problems, complications, and consequences of depression in patients undergoing hemodialysis (HD), the application of complementary therapies such as meditation counseling is highly important.

Objectives: Therefore, this study aimed to investigate the effect of meditation on depression in patients undergoing HD.

Methods: This clinical trial was conducted on 57 patients who met the inclusion criteria by the convenience sampling method. The participants were randomly allocated to intervention and control groups. Those in the intervention group attended three 15-20 minute educational practice sessions weekly offered over an eightweek period while the control group received no intervention. A validated questionnaire assessed depressive symptoms at baseline and after 4 and 8 weeks. In addition, the CONSORT statement was adhered to where possible. Finally, t-test, repeated-measures ANOVA, Fisher’s exact test, and Chi-square tests were used to analyze data using SPSS 16.

Results: The mean depression score among the patients of the intervention group decreased from 85±1.56 at baseline to 70±1.27 at 8-week follow-up (P=0.003). Further, the mean score of depressive symptoms significantly decreased during eight weeks after the intervention (P<0.001).

Conclusion: Simple and non-expensive meditation exercises could fruitfully decrease depression symptoms in patients undergoing HD. The prevalence of depressive symptoms is high among the patients, therefore, the implementation of meditation exercises should help minimize a major problem in these groups of patients.