SynthesisBrain imaging and behavior2021
Mindfulness related changes in grey matter: a systematic review and meta-analysis.
Synthesis in Brain imaging and behavior, 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 28 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled 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.
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.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
28 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 53 citations in OpenAlex.
- Mindfulness-based randomized controlled trials led to brain structural changes: an anatomical likelihood meta-analysis.Scientific reports · 2023Pooled it
- Effect of meditation on clinical symptoms and gray matter volume in chronic schizophrenia: a randomized controlled trial.European archives of psychiatry and clinical neuroscience · 2026Trial
- Longitudinal neurofunctional changes in medication overuse headache patients after mindfulness practice in a randomized controlled trial (the MIND-CM study).The journal of headache and pain · 2024Trial
- Effectiveness of Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction Therapy in Improving Quality of Life Among Anesthesiology Residents.Actas espanolas de psiquiatria · 2026Article
- Article
- Psychoneuroimmunology of Mindfulness: What works, how it works, and for whom?Brain, behavior, & immunity - health · 2025Article
- The Impact of Morning Meditation and Sleep Quality on Affective and Health Outcomes in Healthcare Workers.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2025Article
- ENIGMA-Meditation: Worldwide Consortium for Neuroscientific Investigations of Meditation Practices.Biological psychiatry. Cognitive neuroscience and neuroimaging · 2025Review
- The Brain That Understands Diversity: A Pilot Study Focusing on the Triple Network.Brain sciences · 2025Article
- The efficacy of meditation on insula dysfunction in patients with chronic schizophrenia.Frontiers in psychiatry · 2025Article
- Article
- Decoding meditation mechanisms underlying brain preservation and psycho-affective health in older expert meditators and older meditation-naive participants.Scientific reports · 2024Article
- Neurobiological Changes Induced by Mindfulness and Meditation: A Systematic Review.Biomedicines · 2024Review
- Exploring the Embodied Mind: Functional Connectome Fingerprinting of Meditation Expertise.Biological psychiatry global open science · 2024Article
- Article
- The Effectiveness of Mindfulness in the Treatment of Methamphetamine Addiction Symptoms: Does Neuroplasticity Play a Role?Brain sciences · 2024Review
- Mindfulness Through Storytelling for Mental Health of Primary School Children: Impact on Acceptability and Its Associations with Personality.Psychology research and behavior management · 2024Article
- Enhanced amygdala-anterior cingulate white matter structural connectivity in Sahaja Yoga Meditators.PloS one · 2024Article
- Effects of web-based mindfulness training on psychological outcomes, attention, and neuroplasticity.Scientific reports · 2023Article
- Long-term benefits of mindfulness on white matter tracts underlying the cortical midline structures in panic disorder: A 2-year longitudinal study.Psychiatry and clinical neurosciences · 2023Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
4 authors at 3 institutions in 4 countries.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
Knowing target regions undergoing strfuncti changes caused by behavioural interventions is paramount in evaluating the effectiveness of such practices. Here, using a systematic review approach, we identified 25 peer-reviewed magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) studies demonstrating grey matter changes related to mindfulness meditation. An activation likelihood estimation (ALE) analysis (n = 16) revealed the right anterior ventral insula as the only significant region with consistent effect across studies, whilst an additional functional connectivity analysis indicates that both left and right insulae, and the anterior cingulate gyrus with adjacent paracingulate gyri should also be considered in future studies. Statistical meta-analyses suggest medium to strong effect sizes from Cohen's d ~ 0.8 in the right insula to ~ 1 using maxima across the whole brain. The systematic review revealed design issues with selection, information, attrition and confirmation biases, in addition to weak statistical power. In conclusion, our analyses show that mindfulness meditation practice does induce grey matter changes but also that improvements in methodology are needed to establish mindfulness as a therapeutic intervention.
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Registered trials
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.