Meditation for the primary and secondary prevention of cardiovascular disease
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Key result
Meditation shows no clear benefit for cardiovascular clinical events or blood pressure.
- RR 0.94
- 95% CI 0.37 to 2.42
- n=6,971
Why the study?
Stress is a cardiovascular disease risk factor, and meditation is increasingly popular, but its effectiveness for primary and secondary cardiovascular prevention remained to be determined.
Does meditation reduce cardiovascular events, blood pressure, and psychological distress in adults at high risk of or with established cardiovascular disease?
Population
Adults at high risk of CVD and those with established CVD
Comparison
MBIs or TM vs active or non-active comparators
Design
Systematic review of randomised controlled trials
Follow-up
12 weeks or more
Authors
Discussion
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Implication
Insufficient evidence to recommend meditation in CVD; leaves open effects on clinical endpoints and BP while suggesting anxiety benefits.
Study Design
Type
Systematic Review (n=6,971)
Structured PICO
Does meditation reduce cardiovascular events, blood pressure, and psychological distress in adults at high risk of or with established cardiovascular disease?
P
Population
6,971 adults at high risk of or with established cardiovascular disease included in 81 randomized controlled trials evaluating meditation interventions.
I
Intervention
Meditation, primarily mindfulness-based interventions (MBIs) and transcendental meditation (TM), for 12 weeks or more.
C
Comparator
Active comparators (alternative interventions) or non-active comparators (no intervention, wait list, usual care).
O
Outcome
CVD clinical events (e.g. cardiovascular mortality), blood pressure, measures of psychological distress and well-being, and adverse events.
Main Result
Relative Risk: 0.94 (95% CI 0.37–2.42)
Meditation may reduce blood pressure and psychological stress in patients at risk for or with cardiovascular disease, but evidence is limited by small study sizes, high heterogeneity, and a lack of data on hard clinical endpoints.
Limitations
- Substantial heterogeneity for many outcomes
- Majority of studies were small
- Unclear risk of bias for most domains
- Very little information on CVD clinical endpoints
Cite This Study
Rees et al. (2024) conducted a systematic review in Cardiovascular disease (primary and secondary prevention) (n=6,971). Meditation (mindfulness-based interventions and transcendental meditation) vs. Active or non-active comparators was evaluated on Clinical CVD events (MBIs vs non-active comparators) (RR 0.94, 95% CI 0.37 to 2.42). Meditation interventions provided very little information on cardiovascular clinical endpoints, with substantial heterogeneity limiting the certainty of findings for blood pressure and psychological outcomes.
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