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The effects of slow breathing on affective responses to pain stimuli: an experimental study.

Alex J Zautra, Robert Fasman, Mary C Davis, Arthur D Bud Craig

Pain January 15, 2010 DOI: 10.1016/j.pain.2009.10.001 (opens in new tab)

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AI-extracted from the abstract
Characteristics Experimental within-subject study Peer reviewed
Sample size 52
Population Women with fibromyalgia syndrome (n=27) and age-matched healthy control women (n=25)
Topics Meditation
Keywords Humans Fibromyalgia Pain threshold Respiratory mechanics Middle aged Female Respiratory rate
Key findings Slow paced breathing at half the normal rate reduced pain intensity and unpleasantness ratings compared with normal-rate breathing, particularly for moderately painful thermal stimuli, though the effect on pain was less reliable in fibromyalgia patients than in healthy controls. Slow breathing also decreased negative affect in both groups and increased positive affect only in healthy controls with high trait negative affect.

Abstract

This study examined whether breathing rate affected self-reported pain and emotion following thermal pain stimuli in women with fibromyalgia syndrome (FM: n=27) or age-matched healthy control women (HC: n=25). FM and HC were exposed to low and moderate thermal pain pulses during paced breathing at their normal rate and one-half their normal rate. Thermal pain pulses were presented in four blocks of four trials. Each block included exposure to both mild and moderate pain trials, and periods of both normal and slow paced breathing. Pain intensity and unpleasantness were recorded immediately following each pain trial, and positive and negative affect were assessed at the end of each block of trials. Compared to normal breathing, slow breathing reduced ratings of pain intensity and unpleasantness, particularly for moderately versus mildly painful thermal stimuli. The effects of slow breathing on pain ratings were less reliable for FM patients than for HCs. Slow versus normal breathing decreased negative affect ratings following thermal pain pulses for both groups, and increased positive affect reports, but only for healthy controls with high trait negative affect. Participants who reported higher levels of trait positive affect prior to the experiment showed greater decreases in negative affect as a result of slow versus normal breathing. These experimental findings provide support for prior reports on the benefits of yogic breathing and mindful Zen meditation for pain and depressed affect. However, chronic pain patients may require more guidance to obtain therapeutic benefit from reduced breathing rates.

Comparable studies

Other experimental studies on meditation, most cited first.

Study Year Design Participants
The benefits of being present: Mindfulness and its role in psychological well-being. Cancer patients (clinical intervention study) 2003 Mixed methods: scale development, correlational, quasi-experimental, laboratory, experience-sampling, and clinical intervention study
Loving-kindness meditation increases social connectedness. 2008 Controlled laboratory experiment
Mindfulness and mind-wandering: Finding convergence through opposing constructs. 2012 Two studies: correlational study and experimental study
Mental Training Enhances Attentional Stability: Neural and Behavioral Evidence 2009 Experimental study
Mindfulness meditation and substance use in an incarcerated population. Incarcerated population 2006 Quasi-experimental with treatment-as-usual control condition

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