The overall objective of this study is to conduct a randomized controlled trial to determine the efficacy of cardiac rehabilitation with and without a structured, standardized, and validated stress reduction component in the secondary prevention of coronary heart disease (CHD) in African Americans. In this phase II trial, 56 African American men and women with established CHD will be randomly allocated either to standard cardiac rehabilitation with formal stress reduction training using the Transcendental Meditation program or to standard cardiac rehabilitation alone. The intervention period will be 12 weeks. At baseline and posttest, subjects will be tested by quantitative Positron Emission Tomography (PET) for myocardial perfusion and ischemia. Secondary outcomes comprise physiological, behavioral and psychosocial risk factors for CHD. The field site will be Columbia University Medical Center and the coordinating center will be MUMRI-Center for Natural Medicine and Prevention.
The overall hypothesis of this study is that a cardiac rehabilitation program with meditation will be more effective than cardiac rehabilitation alone in improving blood flow through the diseased coronary arteries in African Americans. For this purpose, 56 African American men and women with coronary heart disease will be randomly assigned either to standard cardiac rehabilitation plus the Transcendental Meditation program or to standard cardiac rehabilitation alone. The treatment period will be 12 weeks in length.