The effectiveness of mindfulness‑based intervention on perceived stress and perception of disease in patients with acute coronary syndrome

CONTEXT: One of the most important issues in patients with coronary artery disease is their mental health indices such as perceived stress and perception of disease.

The aim of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of mindfulness‑based intervention on the perceived stress and disease perception of patients with acute coronary syndrome.

This is a clinical trial, two‑group, and three‑stage study on 76 patients with acute coronary syndrome who were randomly divided into intervention and control groups. Nine weekly sessions of mindfulness‑based training program were administered to the intervention group. The control group received routine services during this period. Data collection was done before, immediately, and 1 month after the intervention, using the Perceived Stress Scale and the Illness Perception Questionnaire. Data were analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistics.

There was no significant difference between the mean scores of perceived stress and illness perception before intervention. After the intervention and 1 month after it, the mean score of perceived stress in the intervention group was statistically significantly lower than the control group (P < 0.001), and the perception of disease in the intervention group was statistically significantly higher than that of the control group (P < 0.001).

It is worthwhile to suggest the mindfulness‑based training program to reduce the perceived stress and correct the perception of disease for patients with acute coronary syndrome.