Influence of Meditative Technique on Musculoskeletal Pain, Sleep Quality, Stress and State Anxiety on Geriatric Participants: A Randomized Controlled Trial

Abstract

Objective: Musculoskeletal pain, sleep disturbances and psychological stress are common issues faced by the elderly. There are limited studies eliciting the effects of specific meditation techniques among the elderly. The present study was undertaken to assess the effect of the Mind Sound Resonance Technique (MSRT) on pain, sleep quality, stress and state anxiety. Methods: Seventy elderly participants with self-reported pain symptoms were randomly assigned to meditation and control groups with an equal allocation ratio. The medita tion group received practice of MSRT for 8 weeks. The control group was offered lifestyle suggestions. The primary outcome of this study is Musculoskeletal Health Questionnaire (MSHQ), secondary outcomes are Perceived Stress Scale (PSS), Geriatric Anxiety Scale (GAS) and Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI). They were assessed at baseline and 8 weeks. Independent and paired t-tests were performed to assess the between and within group changes. Results: The Between-group analysis has shown MSRT meditation to be better than control for MSHQ (p <0.01), PSQI global score (p <0.01), and GAS global score (p<0.01) along with its subscale (p <0.01). Within group analysis for primary variable MSHQ (p <0.05) secondary variable PSQI, PSS AND GAS has shown