Mindfulness-Based Interventions for Insomnia: A Meta-Analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials

ABSTRACT

Objective: Mindfulness-based interventions (MBIs) are clinically effective for insomnia, but the research findings have been mixed. This meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials (RCTs) examined the effect of MBIs on insomnia. Method: Both English (PubMed, PsycINFO, Embase, and Cochrane Library databases) and Chinese (WanFang and CNKI) databases were systematically and independently searched. Standardized mean differences (SMDs) and risk ratio (RR) with their 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were calculated using the random effects model. Results: Five RCTs (n = 520) comparing MBIs (n = 279) and control (n = 241) groups were identified and analyzed. Compared to the control group, participants in the MBIs group showed significant improvement in insomnia as measured by the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (n = 247; SMD: −1.01, 95% CI: −1.28 to −0.75, I² = 0%, p < 0.00001) at post-MBIs assessment. Conclusion: In this comprehensive meta-analysis, MBIs appear to be effective in the treatment of insomnia. Further studies to examine the long-term effects of MBIs for insomnia are needed.

Acknowledgments

The study was supported by the University of Macau (SRG2014-00019-FHS; MYRG2015-00230-FHS; MYRG2016-00005-FHS). The University of Macau had no role in the study design, generating or interpreting the results and publication of the study.

Conflict of interest

We declare that the authors have no competing interests.

Statement

All co-authors have seen and approved the manuscript. There is no conflict of interest concerning the authors in conducting this study and preparing the manuscript.

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Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by the University of Macau [SRG2014-00019-FHS; MYRG2015-00230-FHS; MYRG2016-00].