Hiroe Hu of the US National Institute of Mental Health and colleagues conducted clinical trials and concluded that the effectiveness of mindfulness meditation practices for various anxiety disorders is comparable to the antidepressant escitalopram. A secondary analysis of the TAME trials included 276 patients (mean age 33 years; 75 percent women) with a clinical diagnosis of agoraphobia, panic disorder, generalized anxiety disorder, or social anxiety disorder. Half of them received weekly training in the theory and practice of several types of mindfulness meditation, while the rest were prescribed escitalopram at a dose of 10–20 milligrams per day. Anxiety, depression, and quality of life were assessed in a blinded manner using three patient questionnaires and three questionnaires from treating physicians. The results were published in JAMA Network Open.
The primary outcomes were assessed after eight weeks, with a total follow-up of 24 weeks. A significant reduction in anxiety symptoms was observed in both groups. No significant differences in treatment effectiveness were observed between the groups (Cohen's d ≤ 0.20). However, adverse effects were reported in 78.6 percent of participants taking escitalopram, compared to 15.4 percent of those practicing mindfulness (p < 0.001).
