Effects of Resting State Functional Connectivity Networks from a Mindfulness-Based Blood Pressure Reduction Intervention

Polcari, Justin

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Effects of Resting State Functional Connectivity Networks from a Mindfulness-Based Blood Pressure Reduction Intervention

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Hypertension is a leading cause of death and disability in the US, with a prevalence of 46% where approximately only 50% of patients have it adequately controlled. Due to the significant challenges in the long-term efficacy and adverse effects of pharmacological interventions, there is a critical need for complementary interventions for hypertension. While the 8-week Mindfulness-Based Blood Pressure Reduction program (MB-BP) induces enduring decreases in blood pressure, the neural correlates of this effect are unknown. The objectives of this study were to identify functional neural connectivity correlates of MB-BP using resting state functional MRI in a subset of participants (14 MB-BP, 22 active controls) from the stage II MB-BP RCT and assess potential associations with key clinical outcomes. MB-BP participants exhibited increased interoception and decreased depressive symptoms compared to controls. Analyses of resting state fMRI data revealed significant effects of MB-BP in multiple functional neural networks: default mode, executive control, frontoparietal, visual, and task-positive. Changes in neural functional connectivity were associated with measures of interoception and depression. Limitations include small sample size (leading to insufficient power in the analysis of blood pressure), the study duration (3 months), and the inclusion of only 2 time points. It is concluded that MB-BP induces alterations in functional connectivity of the brain which could mediate beneficial changes in depression, interoceptive awareness, and blood pressure in individuals with hypertension.

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