Mindfulness and CBT Chronic Low Back Pain

Mindfulness and cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) both improve symptoms of chronic low back pain. The corresponding study was published in JAMA Network Open.

CBT is the standard psychological treatment for chronic pain and has demonstrated modest short-term benefits for improving pain, affect, and function of chronic lower back pain. Mindfulness-based therapy (MBT) has also yielded positive results when applied to chronic low back pain. Until now, limited research has compared the long-term effectiveness of MBT and CBT for opioid-treated chronic low back pain.

In the current study, researchers conducted a randomized clinical trial of 770 adults with opioid-treated chronic low back pain from three sites:
Madison, Wisconsin;
Boston, Massachusetts; and Salt Lake City, Utah. Participants experienced moderate to severe pain, functional limitations, compromised quality of life, and had undergone numerous prior treatments.

The participants underwent 8 weeks of therapist-led CBT or MBT group sessions. They were instructed to practice what they learned for 30 minutes daily, six days a week, over 12 months. They were not advised to reduce their opioid dosage.

Results showed that participants from both groups experienced improvements in pain, physical function, quality of life, and a reduction in daily opioid use. The outcomes were similar for both interventions.

Senior author Eric Garland, endowed professor in health sciences and psychology at the University of California, San Diego, stated, "These therapies aren't a total cure, but they teach people how to develop the inner resources they need to cope with chronic pain and to live a better life."

He added, "Mindfulness is a self-regulated tool that comes from within, unlike surgery or medication where something is being done to you from the outside. By learning these techniques, patients continue to experience lasting benefit."

Sources:
Science Daily, JAMA Network Open