Biobehavioral Effects of Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction in HIV

Mindfulness meditation, which is described as a process of bringing awareness to moment-to-moment experience, has been receiving substantial scientific attention as a process that can be stress and health protective (Brown, Ryan, & Creswell, 2007). Recent reviews by Baer (2003), Bishop (2002), and Grossman et al (2004) support the effectiveness of the standardized and manualized MBSR program in reducing stress and functional disability in a variety of chronic illnesses, although no studies have tested if MBSR impacts clinical markers of HIV, although some evidence suggests that MBSR improves some markers of innate immunity and quality of life in HIV-infected adults (see Robinson, Mathews, & Witek-Janusek, 2003). In this study, we propose to extend this work by investigating the impact of this intervention on biological and functional health status in HIV-positive adults.

We propose to determine whether the 8-week MBSR program is more effective than a one-day MBSR seminar in: (1) maintaining immune resistance in HIV infection (i.e. maintaining counts of CD4+ T lymphocytes and reducing HIV viral load), and (2) improving HIV-related quality of life. Additional analyses will test for a dose-response effect of MBSR by examining if MBSR class attendance and daily meditation practice are associated with the primary and secondary outcomes. These aims will be tested in a sample of 50 HIV-positive adults that is diverse with respect to ethnicity, gender and sexual orientation.