TOPLINE:

Mindfulness-based auditory hallucination management (MBAHM) added to routine care for 8 weeks was associated with a greater reduction in auditory hallucinations, anxiety, and depression, as well as a greater improvement in quality of life, compared to routine care alone in patients with schizophrenia, a new randomized trial showed.

METHODOLOGY:

• In a randomized controlled trial conducted from 2024 to 2025 in China involving 80 adults with schizophrenia and auditory hallucinations, half were randomly assigned to receive routine care plus 2-hour MBAHM sessions twice weekly for 8 weeks (mean age, 45 years; 65% women), while the other half received routine care alone (control group; mean age, 50 years; 52.5% women).
• The primary outcome measure was the Auditory Hallucinations Subscale of the Psychotic Symptom Rating Scales.
• Secondary measures included the Hamilton Anxiety Rating Scale, the Hamilton Rating Scale for Depression, and the Schizophrenia Quality of Life Scale. All measures were administered at baseline and post-intervention.

TAKEAWAY:

• The adjunct mindfulness group had significantly greater reductions in auditory hallucinations at 8 weeks than the control group (score changes from baseline, 24.0 to 13.6 vs 24.75 to 22.5, respectively; P < .001).
• Depression and anxiety scores also decreased significantly for the MBAHM group but decreased only modestly for the control group (P < .001 for between-group comparisons).
• Quality of life improved significantly in the MBAHM group (P < .001), whereas no significant change was observed in the control group.
• Reductions in auditory hallucination severity scores were significantly correlated with improvements in depression, anxiety, and quality of life scores.

IN PRACTICE:

“These findings suggest that MBAHM may serve as a valuable non-pharmacological adjunctive therapy for schizophrenia, although further research is needed to confirm its long-term efficacy and clinical sustainability,” the investigators wrote.

SOURCE:

The study was led by Shuixian Yang, PhD, The Affiliated Brain Hospital, Guangzhou Medical University, Guangzhou, China. It was published online on February 11 in the Journal of Psychiatric Research.

LIMITATIONS: 

The study was limited by a small sample size and lacked a placebo control group, long-term follow-up, and consideration of potential confounding effects of varying pharmacologic treatments, which may have influenced the outcomes.

DISCLOSURES:

The study was funded by the Guangzhou Health Science and Technology Project. Yang and another investigator reported receiving financial support from the project. The other investigators reported no relevant conflicts of interest.

This article was created using several editorial tools, including AI, as part of the process. Human editors reviewed this content before publication.