Baseline socio-demographical and clinical characteristics
| Characteristic | MBSR intervention group (n=42) | HLC control group (n=41) | p Value |
| Age in years, mean (SD) | 51.93 (13.6) | 53.61 (13.7) | 0.575 |
| Women, n (%) | 27 (64.3) | 29 (70.7) | 0.641 |
| Race, n (%) | 0.233 | ||
| White | 36 (90.0) | 40 (97.6) | |
| Black | 1 (2.5) | 0 (0.0) | |
| Other | 3 (7.5) | 1 (2.4) | |
| Latino, n (%) | 5 (12.8) | 1 (2.6) | 0.200 |
| Education, n (%) | 0.649 | ||
| High-school degree or GED | 6 (14.6) | 7 (17.5) | |
| College 1–3 years | 13 (31.7) | 16 (40.0) | |
| College degree | 14 (34.1) | 13 (32.5) | |
| MA or doctoral | 8 (19.5) | 4 (10.0) | |
| Marital status, n (%) | 0.880 | ||
| Married or living with partner | 29 (70.7) | 31 (75.6) | |
| Never married | 5 (12.2) | 4 (9.8) | |
| Divorced or widowed | 7 (17.0) | 6 (14.7) | |
| Asthma control,* n (%) | 0.941 | ||
| Well controlled | 3 (7.3) | 3 (7.5) | |
| Not well controlled | 20 (48.8) | 21 (52.5) | |
| Very poorly controlled | 18 (43.9) | 16 (40.0) | |
| Asthma severity, n (%) | 0.586 | ||
| Mild | 6 (14.3) | 5 (12.2) | |
| Moderate | 18 (42.9) | 22 (53.7) | |
| Severe | 18 (42.9) | 14 (34.1) | |
| FEV1 in litres, mean (SD) | 2.57 (0.6) | 2.54 (0.7) | 0.842 |
| FEV1 predicted, mean (SD) | 91.7 (16.6) | 94.6 (18.9) | 0.453 |
| Morning PEF in litres/min, mean (SD) | 443.9 (146.6) | 396.8 (134.4) | 0.139 |
| Short-term bronchodilator/rescue medication use, times/week, mean (SD) | 2.92 (5.4) | 2.22 (4.2) | 0.623† |
| Used short-term bronchodilator/rescue medication, n (%) | 16 (39.0) | 19 (50.0) | 0.370 |
| Used long-term controller medication (ICS or oral prednisone), n (%) | 33 (80.5) | 29 (74.4) | 0.512 |
| Used ICS, n (%) | 31 (75.6) | 29 (74.4) | 1.000 |
| Prednisone/Methylprednisolone used in past 30 days, n (%) | 10 (24.4) | 2 (4.9) | 0.026 |
| Patients with asthma not well controlled using long-term controller medication (ICS or oral prednisone), n (%) | 31 (83.78) | 28 (80) | 0.764 |
| AQOL, mean (SD) | 5.07 (1.2) | 5.33 (1.0) | 0.297 |
| PSS, mean (SD) | 17.41 (6.3) | 15.75 (7.8) | 0.294 |
| Other medical conditions, n (%) | |||
| Allergic rhinitis | 15 (36.6) | 14 (34.1) | 1.000 |
| Heart disease | 3 (7.3) | 4 (9.8) | 1.000 |
| Gastro-esophageal reflux disease | 25 (61.0) | 19 (47.5) | 0.268 |
| No. of days missed school or work due to asthma in past 6 months, mean (SD) | 0.61 (1.6) | 0.10 (0.4) | 0.094† |
| Missed at least 1 day of work or school due to asthma in the past 6 months, n (%) | 8 (19.5) | 3 (7.5) | 0.194 |
↵* Asthma control was assessed based on the National Heart Lung and Blood Institute8 criteria. Presented are per cent classified as well controlled (vs not well controlled or very poorly controlled).
↵† Rank-sum test.
AQOL, Asthma Quality of Life; FEV1, forced expiratory volume in 1 s; GED, general education diploma; HLC, healthy living course; ICS, inhaled corticosteroid; MA, Master of Arts degree; MBSR, mindfulness-based stress reduction; PEF, peak expiratory flow; PSS, Perceived Stress Scale.