The Effect of Mindfulness on Vascular Inflammation in Stable Coronary Disease: A Multi-System PET/MRI Study
Massachusetts General Hospital
Summary
This study aims to evaluate the effect of 8 weeks of a stress reduction intervention on atherosclerotic plaque inflammation in adults with stable coronary artery disease, as quantified by positron emission tomography (PET) with 18F-fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG) in individuals with increased psychosocial stress.
Description
This randomized controlled imaging study will be performed to evaluate the impact of mindfulness-based stress reduction via a mind body program on arterial inflammation in individuals with self-identified high levels of stress and stable coronary artery disease. Individuals will undergo baseline FDG-PET and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and will then be randomized to the stress-reduction intervention group or no intervention groups by blocks (1:1) with stratification by age and sex. The stress reduction sessions focus on developing an understanding of stress physiology and the physiology of…
Eligibility
- Age range
- 45–65 years
- Sex
- All
- Healthy volunteers
- No
Inclusion Criteria: * Must admit to feeling stressed and/or have PSS score \> 13 (moderate stress) * Must be willing to complete stress reduction course and imaging sessions with \< 3 missed appointments in last year * Known clinical cardiovascular disease with prior atherosclerotic myocardial infarction, percutaneous intervention or bypass surgery \> 6 months before entry, or severe coronary calcifications on computed tomography or coronary calcium score \>400 * Stable symptoms without symptomatic heart failure or arrhythmia or planned revascularization * Maximally tolerated and stable medic…
Interventions
- BehavioralStress Reduction
The stress reduction program is a multimodal mind-body resiliency program that incorporates 3 core components into each session: 1\) Elicitation of the Relaxation Response through mind-body techniques; 2) discussion about stress awareness to learn how to identify personal stressors and experiences of stress; and 3) coping strategies and adaptive perspective-taking to promote positive well-being.
Location
- Massachusetts General HospitalBoston, Massachusetts