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Cited by 64Mindfulness and Compassion InterventionsPsychotherapy Techniques and ApplicationsTreatment of Major Depression

Critical Analysis of the Efficacy of Meditation Therapies for Acute and Subacute Phase Treatment of Depressive Disorders: A Systematic Review

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Jain, Felipe A., Walsh, Roger N., Eisendrath, Stuart J., Christensen, Scott, Rael Cahn, B.·2015·Psychosomatics
DOI 10.1016/j.psym.2014.10.007PMC PMC4383597
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Abstract

Background Recently, the application of meditative practices to the treatment of depressive disorders has met with increasing clinical and scientific interest, owing to a lower side-effect burden, potential reduction of polypharmacy, and theoretical considerations that such interventions may target some of the cognitive roots of depression. Objective We aimed to determine the state of the evidence supporting this application. Methods Randomized controlled trials of techniques meeting the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality definition of meditation, for participants having clinically diagnosed depressive disorders, not currently in remission, were selected. Meditation therapies were separated into praxis (i.e., how they were applied) components, and trial outcomes were reviewed. Results 18 studies meeting the inclusion criteria were identified, encompassing 7 distinct techniques and 1173 patients. Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy comprised the largest proportion of studies. Studies including patients having acute major depressive episodes (n = 10 studies), and those with residual subacute clinical symptoms despite initial treatment (n = 8), demonstrated moderate to large reductions in depression symptoms within the group, and relative to control groups. There was significant heterogeneity of techniques and trial designs. Conclusions A substantial body of evidence indicates that meditation therapies may have salutary effects on patients having clinical depressive disorders during the acute and subacute phases of treatment. Owing to methodologic deficiencies and trial heterogeneity, large-scale, randomized controlled trials with well-described comparator interventions and measures of expectation are needed to clarify the role of meditation in the depression treatment armamentarium.

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  • Recent systematic review and meta-analysis have further evaluated the remarkable feasibility and efficacy of meditation techniques in people with depressive disorders.

    “In brief, both the recent systematic review and meta-analysis38 43 44 have further evaluated the remarkable feasibility and efficacy of meditation techniques in people with depressive disorders.”

    From Biological mechanism study of meditation and its application in mental disorders (2020) · cites this paper as [38]

  • Meditation is relatively efficacious in the acute and subacute phase of treatment of depressive disorders.

    “Meditation is relatively efficacious in the acute and subacute phase of treatment of depressive disorders,38 and our research also indicates that 8 weeks of MM effectively relieves depression and anxiety emotions and improves sleep quality.39”

    From Biological mechanism study of meditation and its application in mental disorders (2020) · cites this paper as [38]

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Authors
Jain, F. A., Walsh, R. N., Eisendrath, S. J., Christensen, S., & Rael Cahn, B.
Affiliations
  • University of California, Los Angeles (US)
  • University of California, Irvine (US)
  • University of California, San Francisco (US)
Corresponding author
Jain, Felipe A.
ORCID
Venue
Psychosomatics
Publisher
Elsevier BV
Published
2015-03
Volume
56
Issue
2
Pages
140-152
ISSN
0033-3182 (ISSN-L)
DOI
10.1016/j.psym.2014.10.007
PMC
PMC4383597
OpenAlex
W2034594689
Cited by
64
References
69
Citations by year
2026: 4 · 2025: 3 · 2024: 3 · 2023: 3 · 2022: 9 · 2021: 5 · 2020: 8 · 2019: 5 · 2018: 5 · 2017: 8 · 2016: 5 · 2015: 6
FWCI
0.96
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Licence
www.elsevier.com/tdm/userlicense/1.0/ (tdm)
Locations
  • Psychosomatics (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed Central (acceptedVersion)
  • eScholarship (California Digital Library) (submittedVersion, cc-by)
Funders
  • National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine
  • Ruth L. Kirschstein National Research Service (5T32MH017140)
Topics
  • Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Mindfulness and Compassion Interventions
  • Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Psychotherapy Techniques and Applications
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Pharmacology › Treatment of Major Depression
Keywords
meditation therapy, depressive disorders, major depressive episode, mindfulness-based cognitive therapy, acute phase treatment, residual depressive symptoms, non-pharmacological treatment, depression symptom reduction
MeSH terms
Major Depressive Disorder, Depressive Disorder, Major, Depressive Disorder, Humans, Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, Treatment Outcome, Meditation, Mindfulness

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