Mindfulness-Based Groups Tied to Significant Reduction in Opioid Craving

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Medically reviewed by Carmen Pope, BPharm. Last updated on Jan 29, 2025.

By Elana Gotkine HealthDay Reporter

WEDNESDAY, Jan. 29, 2025 -- For adults with opioid use disorder (OUD) receiving buprenorphine, a mindfulness-based group is similar to a recovery support group for opioid use, substance use, and reductions in anxiety, but demonstrates a larger reduction in craving, according to a study published online Jan. 21 in JAMA Network Open.

Zev Schuman-Olivier, M.D., from Cambridge Health Alliance in Malden, Massachusetts, and colleagues compared the effects of the Mindful Recovery Opioid Use Disorder Care Continuum (M-ROCC) versus active control among adults receiving buprenorphine for OUD in a randomized clinical trial. The M-ROCC program was a 24-week motivationally adaptive, trauma-informed, mindfulness-based group curriculum; each week, participants attended an informal check-in and intervention. The recovery support control group curriculum used four evidence-based substance use disorder-focused nonmindfulness approaches.

The study included 196 participants. The researchers found that opioid use did not differ significantly between the groups (13.4 and 12.7 percent in the M-ROCC and recovery support groups, respectively); no significant differences were seen in cocaine or benzodiazepine use. Across both M-ROCC and recovery support groups, anxiety T scores were reduced, with no significant difference observed between the groups from baseline to week 24. Compared with recovery support group participants, the M-ROCC participants demonstrated a significantly larger reduction in opioid craving.

"The study suggests that mindfulness-based groups may be particularly useful for reducing craving among patients with OUD who are experiencing residual opioid craving during buprenorphine treatment," the authors write.

One author disclosed ties to Alkermes.

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Source: HealthDay

Posted : 2025-01-30 06:00

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