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Review
. 2025 Apr 8:16:1552678.
doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2025.1552678. eCollection 2025.

Exploring efficacy of spiritual-based interventions (SBIs) in addressing depressive symptoms among cardiac patients in MENA region: a scoping review

Rizwana Amin  1
Affiliations
Review

Exploring efficacy of spiritual-based interventions (SBIs) in addressing depressive symptoms among cardiac patients in MENA region: a scoping review

Rizwana Amin. Front Psychol. .

Abstract

Background: Depression is a widespread psychological issue among patients with cardiac diseases, which affects treatment adherence, recovery, and overall quality of life. Spiritual-based interventions (SBIs) have gained attention for their potential to alleviate depressive symptoms. However, there is a dearth of research investigating the efficacy of these interventions in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region.

Objective: This scoping review aims to synthesize available evidence on the efficacy of spiritual-based interventions in reducing depressive symptoms among cardiac patients in the MENA region.

Methods: The present research used a systematic approach to searching electronic databases such as SCOPUS, Web of Science, and ESBECOhost Arab research world in the English language from 2015 to 2025, based on the Arksey and O'Malley framework. Papers were identified based on spiritual-based Intervention addressing depressive symptoms among cardiac patients in the MENA region. Studies were analyzed using the Population-Concept-Context (PCC) framework, as outlined in the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses for Scoping Reviews (PRISMA-ScR).

Results: The analysis pinpoints numerous Spiritual Interventions, such as prayer, mindfulness, and Faith-based counseling, as usual practices. The results showed that SBIs are related to a decrease in depression symptomology and enhancement of psychological wellbeing. Nevertheless, variability in the study models, small amounts of samples, and sparse long-term studies are also some of the current study's limitations.

Conclusion: This research indicates that the efficacy of spiritual-based interventions can reduce depressive signs in cardiac patients in the MENA region. However, additional research is required to ascertain long-term efficacy and cross-cultural effectiveness.

Keywords: MENA region; cardiac patients; depressive symptoms; scoping review; spiritual-based interventions.

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Conflict of interest statement

The author declares that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest. The author(s) declared that they were an editorial board member of Frontiers, at the time of submission. This had no impact on the peer review process and the final decision.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Study selection flow chart from Tricco et al. (2018).
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