Mind-Body Benefits of Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (Emdr) in Acute Respiratory Infections: A Randomized Clinical Study of Psychophysiological Outcomes Publisher

Summary: Can EMDR ease distress during respiratory infection? A trial found less anxiety and better sleep than controls; oxygen saturation also rose. #MentalHealth #RespiratoryCare

Abbasi M ; Darvishi M ; Abazari A ; Saeedinejad Z ; Saeedi S P ; Faghihi S H ; Haghgoo A
Source: Iranian Journal of Psychiatry Published:2026

Abstract

Objective: Acute respiratory infection (ARI) represent one of the foremost contributors to worldwide mortality. Psychological factors, notably anxiety, commonly obstruct patient recovery. Conventional medical approaches rarely account for the interplay between these psychological and physiological factors. This study aimed to determine the effects of EMDR on hemodynamic indices, anxiety levels, and sleep quality in hospitalized patients with ARI. Method: In 2022, a six-month parallel-group randomized controlled trial was conducted in Yasouj, Iran, including 89 hospitalized patients with ARI. Participants were randomly assigned to either an intervention group receiving three bedside Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) sessions (45–90 minutes each) or a control group receiving standard care. Outcomes included the Hamilton Anxiety Rating Scale (HARS), a hemodynamic monitoring checklist, and the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI), assessed at baseline and post-intervention. Data were analyzed using SPSS version 26 with descriptive and inferential statistical methods. Results: In the intervention group, mean heart rate, respiratory rate, blood pressure, and anxiety scores decreased significantly compared with the control group, whereas blood oxygen saturation increased significantly (P ≤ 0.05). Sleep quality indices in the EMDR group exhibited statistically significant improvements relative to the control group at both the one-month and three-month follow-up assessments (P = 0.001). Within-group analyses further confirmed notable pre- to post-intervention changes across the key outcome variables exclusively in the EMDR arm (P ≤ 0.05). In contrast, the control group displayed no statistically meaningful alterations in these parameters. Conclusion: Taken together, the present findings position EMDR as a clinically viable, rapidly applicable, and pharmacologically independent therapeutic option for patients hospitalized with ARI. © 2026 Tehran University of Medical Sciences. All rights reserved.