Mindfulness Ease Chronic Pain in Veterans

Veterans (military persons) with chronic pain can benefit from mindfulness-based interventions given in an upgraded style via telehealth, which can reduce pain and improve their overall health. Mindfulness-based interventions are therapeutic approaches that promote the practice of mindfulness as a crucial part of physical and mental health (1^✔ ✔Trusted Source
Telehealth Mindfulness-Based Interventions for Chronic Pain

Go to source). The study definitively evaluated the effectiveness of two eight-week telehealth mindfulness-based interventions (MBIs) designed for seamless integration into healthcare systems. MBIs encourage people to pay attention to the present moment without judgment, and they frequently include practices such as meditation, breathing exercises, or gentle movement.

Learning to Apply Mindfulness to Pain (LAMP)

The Learning to Apply Mindfulness to Pain (LAMP) trial is a multisite clinical trial that compares two approaches for delivering mindfulness-based interventions via telehealth for veterans with chronic pain.The goal was to create MBIs that required lesser resources, could be scaled up, and were easy for patients to use.

Between November 2020 and May 2022, 811 veterans with moderate to severe chronic pain participated in the Learning to Apply Mindfulness to Pain (LAMP) study at three Veterans Affairs (VA) facilities. Outcomes were assessed at outset, 10 weeks, six months and one year.

The study tested two approaches to delivering MBIs via telehealth:

1. Group MBI: Conducted through video conferencing, this format used pre-recorded mindfulness education and skill training videos. Group discussions were led by a facilitator who was not an expert in mindfulness.
2. Self-Paced MBI: This asynchronous format allowed participants to engage with the MBI at their own pace. The intervention was supplemented with three individual facilitator calls.

Key findings from the study include

• Pain-related function improved significantly for patients in the group and self-paced MBIs.
• There were significant improvements in pain intensity, physical functioning, fatigue, sleep disturbance, social functioning, depression and PTSD among patients in the group and self-paced MBIs over 12 months, compared to usual care.
• The group and self-paced MBIs did not significantly differ from each other.

Roadblocks in MBI Approach

Mindfulness-based interventions (MBIs) have proved difficult to scale up in healthcare systems, even though they are evidence-based treatments for chronic pain and illnesses like anxiety and depression which often accompany pain.

They are time-consuming and requires dedicated spaces posing barriers to patients. Trained mindfulness instructors are necessary. Their goal was to create MBIs that required fewer resources, could be scaled up, and were easier for patients to use.

The results of this study suggest low-resource, telehealth-based MBIs could help accelerate and improve the implementation of non-medication pain treatment in VA healthcare and beyond.

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Dr. Burgess and the research team are leading a new project — called Rural Veterans Applying Mind Body Skills for Pain (RAMP) — which will test the effectiveness of a scalable, mind-body telehealth intervention for chronic pain, designed for veterans living in rural areas. RAMP builds on LAMP through its use of mindfulness practices while also incorporating pain education, physical and rehabilitative exercise, and cognitive and behavioral strategies.

Reference:

1. Telehealth Mindfulness-Based Interventions for Chronic Pain - (https:jamanetwork.com/journals/jamainternalmedicine/article-abstract/2822046)

Source-Eurekalert