Abstract
Background: Fatigue is a common symptom following neurological illnesses and injuries, and is rated as one of the most debilitating sequela in conditions such as stroke, traumatic brain injury (TBI), and multiple sclerosis (MS). Yet effective treatments are lacking, suggesting a pressing need for a better understanding of its etiology and mechanisms that may alleviate the symptoms. Recently mindfulness-based interventions have demonstrated promising results for fatigue symptom relief.Objective: Investigate the efficacy of mindfulness-based interventions for fatigue across neurological conditions and acquired brain injuries.Materials and Methods: Systematic literature searches were conducted in PubMed, Medline, Web of Science, and PsycINFO. We included randomized controlled trials applying mindfulness-based interventions in patients with neurological conditions or acquired brain injuries. Four studies (N = 257) were retained for meta-analysis. The studies included patients diagnosed with MS, TBI, and stroke.Results: The estimated effect size for the total sample was -0.37 (95% CI: -0.58, -0.17).Conclusion: The results indicate that mindfulness-based interventions may relieve fatigue in neurological conditions such as stroke, TBI, and MS. However, the effect size is moderate, and further research is needed in order to determine the effect and improve our understanding of how mindfulness-based interventions affect fatigue symptom perception in patients with neurological conditions.
Highlights
Fatigue is a prevalent condition associated with a number of diseases (Hofman et al, 2007; Kluger et al, 2013)
The search yielded 372 unique articles referring to fatigue and mindfulness
All interventions were based on either mindfulnessbased stress reduction (MBSR) (Grossman et al, 2004; Johansson et al, 2012, 2015) or mindfulness-based cognitive therapy (MBCT; Bogosian et al, 2015), and all interventions lasted 8 weeks
Summary
Fatigue is a prevalent condition associated with a number of diseases (Hofman et al, 2007; Kluger et al, 2013). The objective of this systematic review is to investigate the effect of mindfulness-based interventions on fatigue symptoms following neurological conditions and acquired brain injuries. Effective treatments are lacking, suggesting a pressing need for a better understanding of its etiology and mechanisms that may alleviate the symptoms. Objective: Investigate the efficacy of mindfulness-based interventions for fatigue across neurological conditions and acquired brain injuries. We included randomized controlled trials applying mindfulness-based interventions in patients with neurological conditions or acquired brain injuries. Conclusion: The results indicate that mindfulness-based interventions may relieve fatigue in neurological conditions such as stroke, TBI, and MS. The effect size is moderate, and further research is needed in order to determine the effect and improve our understanding of how mindfulness-based interventions affect fatigue symptom perception in patients with neurological conditions
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