A pilot study evaluating mindfulness-based stress reduction and massage for the management of chronic pain.

BACKGROUND Mindfulness-based stress reduction (MBSR) and massage may be useful adjunctive therapies for chronic musculoskeletal pain. OBJECTIVE To evaluate the feasibility of studying MBSR and massage for the management of chronic pain and estimate their effects on pain and mood. DESIGN Randomized trial comparing MBSR or massage with standard care. PARTICIPANTS Thirty patients with chronic musculoskeletal pain. MEASUREMENTS Pain was assessed with 0 to 10 numeric rating scales. Physical and mental health status was measured with the SF-12. RESULTS The study completion rate was 76.7%. At week 8, the massage group had average difference scores for pain unpleasantness of 2.9 and mental health status of 13.6 compared with 0.13 (P<.05) and 3.9 (P<.04), respectively, for the standard care group. These differences were no longer significant at week 12. There were no significant differences in the pain outcomes for the MBSR group. At week 12, the mean change in mental health status for the MBSR group was 10.2 compared with -1.7 in the standard care group (P<.04). CONCLUSIONS It is feasible to study MBSR and massage in patients with chronic musculoskeletal pain. Mindfulness-based stress reduction may be more effective and longer-lasting for mood improvement while massage may be more effective for reducing pain.