Dunne Jennifer, Chih Hui Jun, Begley Andrea, Daly Alison, Gerlach Regina, Schütze Robert, Castell Emily, Byrne Jean, Black Lucinda J
School of Public Health, Curtin University, Perth, Western Australia, Australia.
School of Public Health, Curtin University, Perth, Western Australia, Australia.
Mult Scler Relat Disord. 2021 Feb;48:102728. doi: 10.1016/j.msard.2020.102728. Epub 2020 Dec 29.
Practicing mindfulness may improve mental health and reduce pain in people with multiple sclerosis (MS). Since participating in face-to-face mindfulness programs can be challenging for people with MS, exploring alternative ways of delivering these programs is necessary. The objective of this trial was to assess feasibility of two different eight-week online mindfulness programs across five domains: recruitment, practicality, acceptability, integration of mindfulness practice, and limited efficacy testing on mental health, quality of life and pain.
In a three-arm randomised controlled mixed-method trial, participants were assigned to: 1) Mindfulness for Multiple Sclerosis (M4MS) (n=18); 2) Chair Yoga (n=18); or 3) wait-list control group (n=19) for eight weeks. Daily home practice diaries and weekly reflective journals were collected along with online questionnaires at baseline and post-intervention. Feasibility was assessed using descriptive statistics, multilevel mixed-effects regression, and content analysis.
Online recruitment, online program delivery and online data collection were all found to be feasible. The sign up rate was 65% and overall, 87% of the participant completed the eight-week online programs. The programs were perceived as practical and acceptable by the participants. Integration of mindfulness practice into daily life varied, with time and fatigue reported as common barriers to practice. No statistically significant differences in efficacy measures were found among groups (p>0.05).
Online mindfulness programs are feasible and acceptable for people with MS. This study provides useful insights for future trials when designing online mindfulness programs for people with MS.
练习正念可能改善多发性硬化症（MS）患者的心理健康并减轻疼痛。由于参加面对面的正念课程对MS患者来说可能具有挑战性，因此有必要探索提供这些课程的替代方法。本试验的目的是评估两种不同的为期八周的在线正念课程在五个方面的可行性：招募、实用性、可接受性、正念练习的融入以及对心理健康、生活质量和疼痛的有限疗效测试。
在一项三臂随机对照混合方法试验中，参与者被分配到：1）多发性硬化症正念课程（M4MS）（n = 18）；2）椅子瑜伽（n = 18）；或3）等待列表对照组（n = 19），为期八周。在基线和干预后收集每日家庭练习日记、每周反思日记以及在线问卷。使用描述性统计、多层次混合效应回归和内容分析来评估可行性。
发现在线招募、在线课程交付和在线数据收集都是可行的。报名率为65%，总体而言，87%的参与者完成了为期八周的在线课程。参与者认为这些课程实用且可接受。正念练习融入日常生活的情况各不相同，时间和疲劳被报告为常见的练习障碍。各组之间在疗效指标上未发现统计学上的显著差异（p > 0.05）。
在线正念课程对MS患者是可行且可接受的。本研究为未来为MS患者设计在线正念课程的试验提供了有用的见解。
