A treatment based on meditation may be as good as drugs in helping to treat depression, researchers report today.
Researchers at Exeter University, UK, compared the benefits of mindfulness based cognitive therapy with standard medication.
Some 424 adult patients with recurring major depression from 95 practices in south-west England took part.
Patients learning the therapy took part in group sessions and learnt how to practice at home.
During the two years of the study, 44% of these patients relapsed compared with 47% of those taking medication, the researchers report in The Lancet.
Mindfulness derives from Buddhist meditation and is described as "the intentional, accepting and non-judgemental focus of one’s attention on the emotions, thoughts and sensations occurring in the present moment."
Researcher Professor Sarah Byford, of King’s College London, UK, said: “As a group intervention, mindfulness-based cognitive therapy was relatively low cost compared to therapies provided on an individual basis and, in terms of the cost of all health and social care services used by participants during the study, we found no significant difference between the two treatments.”
Fellow researcher Professor Willem Kuyken, of Oxford University, said: “Whilst this study doesn’t show that mindfulness-based cognitive therapy works any better than maintenance antidepressant medication in reducing the rate of relapse in depression, we believe these results suggest a new choice for the millions of people with recurrent depression on repeat prescriptions. ”
Effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of mindfulness-based cognitive therapy compared with maintenance antidepressant treatment in the prevention of depressive relapse or recurrence (PREVENT): a randomised controlled trial. Lancet 21 April 2014 [abstract]
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