psychiatrist

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Original Research

Randomized Controlled Trial of Mindfulness Meditation for Generalized Anxiety Disorder: Effects on Anxiety and Stress Reactivity

Elizabeth A. Hoge, MD; Eric Bui, MD; Luana Marques, PhD; Christina A. Metcalf, BA; Laura K. Morris, BA; Donald J. Robinaugh, MA; John J. Worthington, MD; Mark H. Pollack, MD; and Naomi M. Simon, MD

Published: March 13, 2013

Article Abstract

Objective: Mindfulness meditation has met increasing interest as a therapeutic strategy for anxiety disorders, but prior studies have been limited by methodological concerns, including a lack of an active comparison group. This is the first randomized, controlled trial comparing the manualized Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) program with an active control for generalized anxiety disorder (GAD), a disorder characterized by chronic worry and physiologic hyperarousal symptoms.

Method: Ninety-three individuals with DSM-IV-diagnosed GAD were randomly assigned to an 8-week group intervention with MBSR or to an attention control, Stress Management Education (SME), between 2009 and 2011. Anxiety symptoms were measured with the Hamilton Anxiety Rating Scale (HAMA; primary outcome measure), the Clinical Global Impressions-Severity of Illness and -Improvement scales (CGI-S and CGI-I), and the Beck Anxiety Inventory (BAI). Stress reactivity was assessed by comparing anxiety and distress during pretreatment and posttreatment administration of the Trier Social Stress Test (TSST).

Results: A modified intent-to-treat analysis including participants who completed at least 1 session of MBSR (n = 48) or SME (n = 41) showed that both interventions led to significant (P < .0001) reductions in HAMA scores at endpoint, but did not significantly differ. MBSR, however, was associated with a significantly greater reduction in anxiety as measured by the CGI-S, the CGI-I, and the BAI (all P values < .05). MBSR was also associated with greater reductions than SME in anxiety and distress ratings in response to the TSST stress challenge (P < .05) and a greater increase in positive self-statements (P = .004).

Conclusions: These results suggest that MBSR may have a beneficial effect on anxiety symptoms in GAD and may also improve stress reactivity and coping as measured in a laboratory stress challenge.

Trial Registration: ClinicalTrials.gov identifier: NCT01033851

J Clin Psychiatry 2013;74(00):000-000

Submitted: August 7, 2012; accepted February 11, 2013.

Online ahead of print: March 13, 2013 (doi:10.4088/JCP.12m08083)

Corresponding author: Elizabeth A. Hoge, MD, Center for Anxiety and Traumatic Stress Disorders, Massachusetts General Hospital, One Bowdoin Sq, 6th Floor, Boston, MA 02114 ([email protected]).

Volume: 74

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