The largest meta-analysis so far of Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy (MBCT) for recurrent depression has found that MBCT is an effective treatment option that can help prevent the recurrence of major depression in those who are currently in remission. The paper published in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA): Psychiatry and co-authored by Tim Dalgleish of the CBU used anonymised individual patient data from nine randomized trials of MBCT. It suggests that for the millions of people who suffer recurrent depression, MBCT represents an evidence-based treatment choice as an alternative or addition to other approaches such as maintenance anti-depressants.

MBCT is a group-based psychological treatment that helps people change the way they think and feel about their experiences and teaches skills that reduce the likelihood of further episodes of depression. MBCT was co-developed at the CBU by John Teasdale almost 20 years ago. This meta-analysis included individual patient data from trials that compared MBCT to usual care as well as to other active treatments such as maintenance antidepressants – the current mainstay approach to prevention of depressive relapse.

Efficacy of Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy in Prevention of Depressive Relapse: An Individual Patient Data Meta-analysis from Randomized Trials:  Kuyken, Warren, Taylor et al. & Dalgleish, 2016.

For the press release on the paper from the Oxford Mindfulness Centre click here