Evidence map›Paper›PMID 26799456›Full record

SynthesisAnnals of the New York Academy of Sciences2016

Mindfulness meditation and the immune system: a systematic review of randomized controlled trials.

David S Black, George M Slavich

7 registry-linked trialsAbstract readSystematic Review
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Synthesis in Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences, 2016. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. It is linked to 7 registered trials, which are not on this map. Cited by 249 papers, 14 of them syntheses that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
249citing papers in PubMed, 14 pooled it
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

NCT02977988 nacompletednot on this map

Neural Mechanisms in Women's Treatment and Early Recovery

TypeinterventionalSponsorUniversity of Southern CaliforniaRan2015 to 2019Enrolled200ConditionsSubstance-related DisordersArmsMindfulness Meditation, Brain and Recovery (B&R)
NCT03878160 nacompletednot on this mapstarted 2018, after this paper: background citation

Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy Delivered Via Group Videoconferencing for Acute Coronary Syndrome Patients With Elevated Depression Symptoms

TypeinterventionalSponsorMassachusetts General HospitalRan2018 to 2020Enrolled27ConditionsAcute Coronary Syndrome, Depression, Myocardial Infarction, Unstable AnginaArmsIndividual Interview
NCT05406531 naunknown statusnot on this mapstarted 2022, after this paper: background citation

The Effectiveness of Mobile-based Psychological Interventions in Reducing Psychological Distress and Preventing Stress-related Changes in Psycho-neuroendocrine-immune Network in Breast Cancer Survivors- Randomized Controlled Trial

TypeinterventionalSponsorMasaryk UniversityRan2022 to 2025Enrolled440ConditionsBreast Cancer Female, Breast Cancer Stage I, Breast Cancer Stage II, Breast Cancer Stage IIIArmsMindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy (MBCT-Ca) - online, Positive Psychology - online, Autogenic Training - online
NCT06064708 nacompletednot on this mapstarted 2023, after this paper: background citation

The Impact of Mindfulness-Based Intervention on Psychophysical Health in Patients Undergoing Hemodialysis: An Experimental Study

TypeinterventionalSponsorJordan University of Science and TechnologyRan2023 to 2023Enrolled64ConditionsEnd Stage Renal DiseaseArmsMindfulness-based intervention
NCT06936293 nacompletednot on this mapstarted 2024, after this paper: background citation

Effects of Mindfulness Meditation on Quality of Sleep, Perceived Stress, Serum Cortisol, and C-reactive Protein in Hemodialysis Patients

TypeinterventionalSponsorUniversity of JordanRan2024 to 2025Enrolled56ConditionsEnd-Stage Renal Disease, Hemodialysis ComplicationArmsMindfulness Meditation
NCT07221071 nacompletednot on this mapstarted 2021, after this paper: background citation

Supporting Women With Breast Cancer to Prepare for Treatment (The Prepare Study)

TypeinterventionalSponsorEndeavor HealthRan2021 to 2024Enrolled42ConditionsBreast Cancer, MindfulnessArmsMindfulness Arm, Control group placebo
NCT07544355 nanot yet recruitingnot on this mapstarted 2026, after this paper: background citation

A Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction Training Program Model for Empowering Nursing Students

TypeinterventionalSponsorIstanbul Medeniyet UniversityRan2026 to 2027Enrolled93ConditionsDepression, Anxiety, Stress, Well-Being, PsychologicalArmsThe mindfulness group-"Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction Program", The life skills workshop group-"Lifestyle Management and Well-being Workshop"
3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

249 citing papers in PubMed, 14 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.

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  11. Meditation: Evidence Map of Systematic Reviews.Frontiers in public health · 2021
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189 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.

4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

2 authors.

David S BlackDepartment of Preventive Medicine, Keck School of Medicine, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, California.
George M SlavichCousins Center for Psychoneuroimmunology and Department of Psychiatry and Biobehavioral Sciences, University of California, Los Angeles, California.

Funding

USC/UCLA Center on Biodemography &Population HealthP30AG017265 · NIA · UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA · PI JENNIFER A AILSHIRE · 1999 to 2026
$17.9M
Network on Measurement of Biological RiskR24AG037898 · NIA · UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA · PI CRIMMINS, EILEEN M, SEEMAN, TERESA E · 2010 to 2014
$1.1M
Neural, Inflammatory, and Genomic Mechanisms Underlying Risk for Depression in AdolescenceK08MH103443 · NIMH · UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA LOS ANGELES · PI SLAVICH, GEORGE MICHAEL · 2015 to 2018
$772k
NCCIH NIH HHS L30 AT008380NIA NIH HHS P30 AG017265NIA NIH HHS R24 AG037898NIMH NIH HHS K08 MH103443
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Mindfulness meditation represents a mental training framework for cultivating the state of mindful awareness in daily life. Recently, there has been a surge of interest in how mindfulness meditation improves human health and well-being. Although studies have shown that mindfulness meditation can improve self-reported measures of disease symptomatology, the effect that mindfulness meditation has on biological mechanisms underlying human aging and disease is less clear. To address this issue, we conducted the first comprehensive review of randomized controlled trials examining the effects of mindfulness meditation on immune system parameters, with a specific focus on five outcomes: (1) circulating and stimulated inflammatory proteins, (2) cellular transcription factors and gene expression, (3) immune cell count, (4) immune cell aging, and (5) antibody response. This analysis revealed substantial heterogeneity across studies with respect to patient population, study design, and assay procedures. The findings suggest possible effects of mindfulness meditation on specific markers of inflammation, cell-mediated immunity, and biological aging, but these results are tentative and require further replication. On the basis of this analysis, we describe the limitations of existing work and suggest possible avenues for future research. Mindfulness meditation may be salutogenic for immune system dynamics, but additional work is needed to examine these effects.

Indexed as

MeditationMindfulnessAwarenessHumansImmune SystemImmunity, CellularRandomized Controlled Trials as TopicStress, Psychologicalagingbiologycytokinesdiseasehealthimmune systeminflammationinterventionmeditationmindfulness

Identifiers

PMID26799456
PMCPMC4940234

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceTDM
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

and 1 more above

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.