scholarly journals Internet Mindfulness Meditation Intervention for the General Public: Pilot Randomized Controlled Trial

2016 ◽  
Vol 3 (3) ◽  
pp. e37 ◽  
Author(s):  
Helané Wahbeh ◽  
Barry S Oken
Keyword(s):  
Quality Of Life ◽  
Health Outcomes ◽  
Mindfulness Meditation ◽  
Controlled Trial ◽  
Meditation Practice ◽  
Home Practice ◽  
Web Based ◽  
Randomized Controlled ◽  
Practice Behavior

Background Mindfulness meditation interventions improve a variety of health conditions and quality of life, are inexpensive, easy to implement, have minimal if any side effects, and engage patients to take an active role in their treatment. However, the group format can be an obstacle for many to take structured meditation programs. Internet Mindfulness Meditation Intervention (IMMI) is a program that could make mindfulness meditation accessible to all people who want and need to receive it. However, the feasibility, acceptability, and ability of IMMI to increase meditation practice have yet to be evaluated. Objectives The primary objectives of this pilot randomized controlled study were to (1) evaluate the feasibility and acceptability of IMMIs in the general population and (2) to evaluate IMMI’s ability to change meditation practice behavior. The secondary objective was to collect preliminary data on health outcomes. Methods Potential participants were recruited from online and offline sources. In a randomized controlled trial, participants were allocated to IMMI or Access to Guided Meditation arm. IMMI included a 1-hour Web-based training session weekly for 6 weeks along with daily home practice guided meditations between sessions. The Access to Guided Meditation arm included a handout on mindfulness meditation and access to the same guided meditation practices that the IMMI participants received, but not the 1-hour Web-based training sessions. The study activities occurred through the participants’ own computer and Internet connection and with research-assistant telephone and email contact. Feasibility and acceptability were measured with enrollment and completion rates and participant satisfaction. The ability of IMMI to modify behavior and increase meditation practice was measured by objective adherence of daily meditation practice via Web-based forms. Self-report questionnaires of quality of life, self-efficacy, depression symptoms, sleep disturbance, perceived stress, and mindfulness were completed before and after the intervention period via Web-based surveys. Results We enrolled 44 adults were enrolled and 31 adults completed all study activities. There were no group differences on demographics or important variables at baseline. Participants rated the IMMI arm higher than the Access to Guided Meditation arm on Client Satisfaction Questionnaire. IMMI was able to increase home practice behavior significantly compared to the Access to Guided Meditation arm: days practiced (P=.05), total minutes (P=.01), and average minutes (P=.05). As expected, there were no significant differences on health outcomes. Conclusions In conclusion, IMMI was found to be feasible and acceptable. The IMMI arm had increased daily meditation practice compared with the Access to Guided Meditation control group. More interaction through staff and/or through built-in email or text reminders may increase daily practice even more. Future studies will examine IMMI’s efficacy at improving health outcomes in the general population and also compare it directly to the well-studied mindfulness-based group interventions to evaluate relative efficacy. Trial Registration Clinicaltrials.gov NCT02655835; http://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT02655835 (Archived by WebCite at http://www.webcitation/ 6jUDuQsG2)

scholarly journals A Web-Based Telemanagement System for Improving Disease Activity and Quality of Life in Patients With Complex Inflammatory Bowel Disease: Pilot Randomized Controlled Trial (Preprint)

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Javier Del Hoyo ◽  
Pilar Nos ◽  
Raquel Faubel ◽  
Diana Muñoz ◽  
David Domínguez ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Quality Of Life ◽  
Health Outcomes ◽  
Disease Activity ◽  
Odds Ratio ◽  
Controlled Trial ◽  
Web Based ◽  
Randomized Controlled ◽  
Inflammatory Bowel ◽  
Telephone Calls

BACKGROUND The reported efficacy of telemedicine in patients with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) is inconsistent among studies, and data for complex IBD are lacking. OBJECTIVE We aimed to evaluate the impact of remote monitoring using a Web system—Telemonitorización de la Enfermedad de Crohn y Colitis Ulcerosa or Telemonitoring of Crohn’s Disease and Ulcerative Colitis (TECCU)—as compared to standard care and telephone care on health outcomes and health care in patients with complex IBD. METHODS We performed a 3-arm randomized controlled trial. Adult patients with IBD who received immunosuppressants and biological agents were recruited from the IBD Unit of a tertiary university hospital. The patients were randomized into groups to receive remote monitoring (G_TECCU), nurse-assisted telephone care (G_NT), or standard care with in-person visits (G_control). All patients completed the study visits at baseline and at 12 and 24 weeks in addition to each type of intervention. The primary outcome was the percentage of patients in remission at 24 weeks. Secondary health outcomes were quality of life, medication adherence, adverse effects, satisfaction, and social activities. Data on the number of outpatient visits and telephone calls, emergency visits, hospitalizations, IBD-related surgeries, and corticosteroid courses were also collected. RESULTS A total of 63 patients were selected (21 patients in each group). During the study, 90.5% (19/21) of patients in G_control, 95.2% (20/21) in G_NT, and 85.7% (18/21) in G_TECCU were compliant to the intervention. After 24 weeks, the percentage of patients in remission was higher in G_TECCU (17/21, 81%) than in G_NT (14/21, 66.7%) and G_control (15/21, 71.4%). A higher improvement in disease activity was observed in G_TECCU than in G_control in terms of the Harvey-Bradshaw/Mayo (odds ratio=0.12, 95% CI=0.003-2.162, P=.19) and Harvey-Bradshaw/Walmsley (odds ratio=0.11, 95% CI=0.004-1.55, P=.13) indexes. Improvement in disease activity was associated with a larger reduction in fecal calprotectin values in G_TECCU compared to G_control (estimated intervention effect: odds ratio=–0.90; 95% CI=–1.96 to 0.16, P=.11). All completers adhered to treatment in G_TECCU. In addition, the quality of life, social activities, and satisfaction improved in all 3 groups. Although the number of outpatient visits and telephone calls was lower in G_TECCU than in G_NT and G_control, the safety profile was similar in all 3 groups. CONCLUSIONS This pilot clinical trial suggests that the TECCU Web-based system is a safe strategy for improving health outcomes in patients with complex IBD and reducing the use of health care resources. CLINICALTRIAL ClinicalTrials.gov NCT02943538; https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT02943538 (Archived by WebCite at http://www.webcitation.org/746CRRtDN).

Web-Based Intervention to Improve Implantable Cardioverter Defibrillator Patients’ Shock-Related Anxiety and Quality of Life: A Randomized Controlled Trial

2017 ◽  
Vol 28 (2) ◽  
pp. 150-164 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tuğba Yardımcı ◽  
Hatice Mert
Keyword(s):  
Quality Of Life ◽  
Randomized Controlled Trial ◽  
Implantable Cardioverter Defibrillator ◽  
Controlled Trial ◽  
Web Based ◽  
Cardioverter Defibrillator ◽  
Randomized Controlled ◽  
Sf 36 ◽  
Shock Anxiety

In spite of its effectiveness, implantable cardioverter defibrillator (ICD) patients face psychological problems such as shock-related anxiety due to device shocks. The aim of this study was to evaluate whether a web-based intervention program for ICD patients would reduce shock-related anxiety and improve quality of life compared with usual care. This was a randomized controlled trial study including a total of 76 patients. Data were collected using Turkish versions of the Florida Shock Anxiety Scale and Short Form Health Survey (SF-36) at 0 (baseline), 3, and 6 months. Following intervention, there was a significant decrease in shock anxiety levels of patients and a statistically significant increase in social functioning, role-physical, mental health, vitality, and bodily pain subdimensions of SF-36. While no statistically significant difference was found between groups in terms of summary scores of SF-36, our results suggest that web-based interventions can be useful for ICD patients.

Short-term effectiveness of a web-based tailored intervention for cancer survivors on quality of life, anxiety, depression, and fatigue: randomized controlled trial

2016 ◽  
Vol 26 (2) ◽  
pp. 222-230 ◽  
Author(s):  
Roy A. Willems ◽  
Catherine A. W. Bolman ◽  
Ilse Mesters ◽  
Iris M. Kanera ◽  
Audrey A. J. M. Beaulen ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Quality Of Life ◽  
Randomized Controlled Trial ◽  
Cancer Survivors ◽  
Controlled Trial ◽  
Tailored Intervention ◽  
Short Term ◽  
Web Based ◽  
Randomized Controlled ◽  
Anxiety Depression

scholarly journals An Eight-Week, Web-Based Mindfulness Virtual Community Intervention for Students’ Mental Health: Randomized Controlled Trial

10.2196/15520 ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 7 (2) ◽  
pp. e15520 ◽  
Author(s):  
Farah Ahmad ◽  
Christo El Morr ◽  
Paul Ritvo ◽  
Nasih Othman ◽  
Rahim Moineddin ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Quality Of Life ◽  
Mental Health ◽  
Randomized Controlled Trial ◽  
Life Satisfaction ◽  
Controlled Trial ◽  
Virtual Community ◽  
Score Change ◽  
Web Based ◽  
Randomized Controlled

Background Innovative interventions are needed to address the increasing mental health needs of university students. Given the demonstrated anxiolytic and antidepressant benefits of mindfulness training, we developed an 8-week, Web-based Mindfulness Virtual Community (MVC) intervention informed by cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) constructs. Objective This study investigated the efficacy of the MVC intervention in reducing symptoms of depression, anxiety, and stress among undergraduate students in Toronto, Canada. The secondary outcomes included quality of life, life satisfaction, and mindfulness. Methods The first 4 weeks of the full MVC intervention (F-MVC) comprised: (1) 12 video-based modules with psycho-education on students’ preidentified stressful topics and topically applied mindfulness practice; (2) anonymous peer-to-peer discussion forums; and (3) anonymous, group-based, professionally guided, 20-min live videoconferences. The second 4 weeks of F-MVC involved access only to video-based modules. The 8-week partial MVC (P-MVC) comprised 12 video-based modules. A randomized controlled trial was conducted with 4 parallel arms: F-MVC, P-MVC, waitlist control (WLC), and group-based face-to-face CBT; results for the latter group are presented elsewhere. Students recruited through multiple strategies consented and were randomized: WLC=40; F-MVC=40, P-MVC=39; all learned about allocation after consenting. The online surveys at baseline (T1), 4 weeks (T2), and 8 weeks (T3) included the Patient Health Questionnaire-9 item, Beck Anxiety Inventory, Perceived Stress Scale, Quality of Life Scale, Brief Multi-Dimensional Students Life Satisfaction Scale, and Five-Facet Mindfulness Questionnaire. Analyses employed generalized estimation equation methods with AR(1) covariance structures and were adjusted for possible confounders (gender, age, birth country, paid work, unpaid work, physical activities, self-rated health, and mental health counseling access). Results Of the 113 students who provided T1 data, 28 were males and 85 were females with a mean age of 24.8 years. Participants in F-MVC (n=39), P-MVC (n=35), and WLC (n=39) groups were similar in sociodemographic characteristics at T1. At T3 follow-up, per adjusted comparisons, there were statistically significant reductions in depression scores for F-MVC (score change −4.03; P<.001) and P-MVC (score change −4.82; P<.001) when compared with WLC. At T3, there was a statistically significant reduction in anxiety scores only for P-MVC (score change −7.35; P=.01) when compared with WLC. There was a statistically significant reduction in scores for perceived stress for both F-MVC (score change −5.32; P<.001) and P-MVC (score change −5.61; P=.005) compared with WLC. There were statistically significant changes at T3 for quality of life and mindfulness for F-MVC and P-MVC vs WLC but not for life satisfaction. Conclusions Internet-based mindfulness CBT–based interventions, such as F-MVC and P-MVC, can result in significant reductions in symptoms of depression, anxiety, and stress in a student population. Future research with a larger sample from multiple universities would more precisely test generalizability. Trial Registration International Standard Randomized Controlled Trial Number ISRCTN92827275; https://www.isrctn.com/ISRCTN92827275

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