Pilot Randomized Study of a Gratitude Journaling Intervention on Heart Rate Variability and Inflammatory Biomarkers in Patients With Stage B Heart Failure.

Redwine LS, Henry BL, Pung MA, Wilson K, Chinh K, Knight B, Jain S, Rutledge T, Greenberg B, Maisel A, Mills PJ

Psychosomatic medicine · January 1, 2016

Objective: We conducted a pilot study in Stage B heart failure patients to examine whether gratitude journaling improved biomarkers related to HF prognosis. Methods: Patients (n = 70; mean age = 66.2 years) were randomized to an 8-week gratitude journaling intervention or treatment as usual. Results: The gratitude intervention was associated with improved trait gratitude scores (p = .017), reduced inflammatory biomarker index score over time (p = .004), and increased parasympathetic heart rate variability responses during the gratitude journaling task (p = .036), compared with treatment as usual. However, there were no resting preintervention to postintervention group differences in heart rate variability (p values > .10). Conclusions: Gratitude journaling may improve biomarkers related to heart failure morbidity, such as reduced inflammation; large-scale studies with active control conditions are needed to confirm these findings.

PMID: 27187845 · DOI: 10.1097/PSY.0000000000000316