A Pilot Study of Group Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy (MBCT) for Combat Veterans with Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)

“Mindfulness-based” interventions show promise for stress reduc-tion in general medical conditions, and initial evidence suggests that they areaccepted in trauma-exposed individuals. Mindfulness-based cognitive therapy(MBCT) shows substantial efficacy for prevention of depression relapse, but ithas been less studied in anxiety disorders. This study investigated the feasibil-ity, acceptability, and clinical outcomes of an MBCT group intervention adaptedfor combat posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD).Methods: Consecutive pa-tients seeking treatment for chronic PTSD at a VA outpatient clinic were en-rolled in 8-week MBCT groups, modified for PTSD (four groups, n = 20) orbrief treatment-as-usual (TAU) comparison group interventions (three groups,n = 17). Pre and posttherapy psychological assessments with clinician admin-istered PTSD scale (CAPS) were performed with all patients, and self-reportmeasures (PTSD diagnostic scale, PDS, and posttraumatic cognitions inventory,PTCI) were administered in the MBCT group.Results: Intent to treat analysesshowed significant improvement in PTSD (CAPS (t(19) = 4.8, P < .001)) in theMBCT condition but not the TAU conditions, and a significant Condition × Timeinteraction (F[1,35] = 16.4, P < .005). MBCT completers (n = 15, 75%) showedgood compliance with assigned homework exercises, and significant and clinicallymeaningful improvement in PTSD symptom severity on posttreatment assess-ment in CAPS and PDS (particularly in avoidance/numbing symptoms), andreduced PTSD-relevant cognitions in PTCI (self blame).Conclusions: Thesedata suggest group MBCT as an acceptable brief intervention/adjunctive ther-apy for combat PTSD, with potential for reducing avoidance symptom clusterand PTSD cognitions. Further studies are needed to examine efficacy in a ran-domized controlled design and to identify factors influencing acceptability andefficacy. Depression and Anxiety 30:638–645, 2013.