Influence of spiritual interventions on the most lethal chronic non-communicable diseases: a scoping review

The aim is to identify and map studies on spiritual interventions in individuals with, or undergoing prevention of, more lethal chronic non-communicable diseases. A scoping review following the recommendations of the Joanna Briggs Institute and the PRISMA extension for scoping reviews was conducted in search of studies published from 2000 onwards on the influence of spiritual interventions on chronic cardiovascular and respiratory diseases, diabetes mellitus and cancer. Of the 1,564 studies identified, 26 experimental or quasi-experimental studies published between 2000 and 2022 were eligible, covering eight modalities of spiritual intervention and a total population of 3,103 participants. The influence of spirituality on cardiovascular diseases was addressed in 16.0% of those studies; on diabetes mellitus, in 11.5%; and on cancer, in 73.0%. No results were found relating to respiratory diseases. Spiritual care was found to have positive effects on the physical, mental, and spiritual health of individuals with chronic illnesses. It is suggested that specific modalities of intervention be studied for associations with participants’ spirituality; this important object of investigation may afford the possibility of enhancing gains by these interventions.