Research Assistant,Department of Psychiatry,London Health Sciences Centre,Canada.
Research Assistant,Schulich School of Medicine and Dentistry, Western University,Canada.
Br J Psychiatry. 2019 Apr;214(4):218-224. doi: 10.1192/bjp.2018.265. Epub 2018 Nov 28.
Late-life depression (LLD) is a disabling disorder and antidepressants are ineffective in as many as 60% of cases. Converging evidence shows a strong correlation between LLD and subsequent risk of cardiovascular disease. There is a need for new, well-tolerated, non-pharmacological augmentation interventions that can treat depressive symptoms as well as improve heart rate variability (HRV), an important prognostic marker for development of subsequent cardiovascular disease. Meditation-based techniques are of interest based on positive findings in other samples.AimsWe aimed to assess the efficacy of Sahaj Samadhi meditation (SSM), an underevaluated, standardised and manualised meditation intervention, on HRV and depressive symptoms.
Eighty-three men and women aged 60-85 years, with mild to moderate depression and receiving treatment as usual (TAU) were randomised to either the SSM or TAU arm. Those allocated to SSM attended 4 consecutive days of group meditation training, using personalised mantras followed by 11 weekly reinforcement sessions. HRV and Hamilton Rating Scale for Depression (HRSD; 17-item) score were measured at baseline and 12 weeks.
All time and frequency domain measures of HRV did not significantly change in either arm. However, there was significant improvement in the SSM arm, compared with TAU, on the HRSD (difference in mean, 2.66; 95% CI 0.26-5.05; P = 0.03).
Compared with TAU, SSM is associated with improvements in depressive symptoms but does not significantly improve HRV in patients with LLD. These results need to be replicated in subsequent studies incorporating a group-based, active control arm.Declaration of interestR.I.N. is the Director of Research and Health Promotion for the Art of Living Foundation, Canada and supervised the staff providing Sahaj Samadhi meditation. S.R. has received research funding from Satellite Healthcare for a mindfulness meditation trial in patients on haemodialysis. The remaining authors report no financial or other relationship relevant to the subject of this article.
老年期抑郁症（LLD）是一种使人丧失能力的疾病，多达 60%的病例对抗抑郁药物无效。越来越多的证据表明，LLD 与随后发生心血管疾病的风险之间存在很强的相关性。因此，我们需要新的、耐受性好的、非药物增强干预措施，既能治疗抑郁症状，又能改善心率变异性（HRV），HRV 是随后发生心血管疾病的一个重要预后标志物。基于其他样本的积极发现，基于冥想的技术引起了人们的兴趣。
评估 Sahaj Samadhi 冥想（SSM）的疗效，这是一种评估不足、标准化和规范化的冥想干预措施，对 HRV 和抑郁症状的影响。
83 名年龄在 60-85 岁之间、患有轻度至中度抑郁症且正在接受常规治疗（TAU）的男性和女性被随机分配到 SSM 或 TAU 组。分配到 SSM 组的患者参加了为期 4 天的团体冥想训练，使用个性化的咒语，然后每周进行 11 次强化训练。在基线和 12 周时测量 HRV 和汉密尔顿抑郁量表（HRSD；17 项）评分。
在两个治疗组中，所有时间和频率域的 HRV 测量值均未显著变化。然而，与 TAU 相比，SSM 组的 HRSD 显著改善（平均差值为 2.66；95%CI 0.26-5.05；P=0.03）。
与 TAU 相比，SSM 与 LLD 患者抑郁症状的改善有关，但与 HRV 的改善无关。这些结果需要在随后的研究中复制，这些研究纳入了以群组为基础的、积极对照的治疗组。
R.I.N. 是加拿大生活艺术基金会的研究和健康促进主任，监督提供 Sahaj Samadhi 冥想的工作人员。S.R. 已从卫星医疗保健公司获得研究资金，用于对血液透析患者进行正念冥想试验。其余作者报告与本文主题无关的财务或其他关系。
