Science
Backed by Rigorous Clinical Research
Meru Health is committed to cutting-edge research conducted with integrity as a way to continuously improve our program.
Published research with
Evidence based treatment modalities.
The treatment modalities and approaches that we utilize have been validated by high quality studies and show significant proof of efficiency. Simultaneously we look to develop and test new treatment approaches backed by rigorous science.
Evidence-based treatment methods
Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT)
Behavioral activation therapy
Mindfulness-based cognitive therapy (MBCT)
Mindfulness based stress reduction
Treatment methods with Preliminary evidence
Heart rate variability biofeedback
Nutritional psychiatry
Sleep medicine
Clinical outcomes
Symptom Reduction During the 12 week Program
Measured with industry standard PHQ-9 (Depression) & GAD-7 (Anxiety) SCALEs
After program completion, 75% of people are in depression or anxiety symptom remission* and 85% of people show clinically significant improvement**.
SSRI data is presented for comparative purposes only and comes from Kroenke, K., West, S.L., Swindle, R., Gilsenan, A., Eckert, G.J., Dolor, R., Stang, P., Zhou, X.H., Hays, R. and Weinberger, M., 2001. Similar effectiveness of paroxetine, fluoxetine, and sertraline in primary care: a randomized trial. Jama, 286(23), pp.2947-2955.
*Remission defined as having a score of 5 or greater on the Patient Health Questionnaire-9 item scale or the Generalized Anxiety Disorder-7 item scale at baseline and then having less than 5 at the end-of-program.
**Clinically significant improvement defined as having a score of 10 or greater on the PHQ-9 or the GAD-7 scale at baseline and then having less than 10 and at least a 50% reduction in symptoms at the end-of-program.
Depression Symptom reduction at 12-month follow-up
Improvements in depressive symptoms are long-lasting, with our patients maintaining or even continuing to improve over the 12 months following the end of the program.
Estimated marginal means for PHQ-9 and GAD-7. The scores across all available timepoints. The dotted line indicates the last week of the Meru Health Program. Error bars represent standard error of the mean (SEM). n=102 Meru Health program participants*
Treatment completion rate
89% of Meru Health patients complete the program with significant symptom reduction. These real-world completion rates appear to be slightly higher than those from research studies of industry standard alternatives such as psychotherapy and antidepressant treatment methods. Although a head-to-head study of the Meru Health program versus these specific alternatives has not yet been conducted, it is believed that these superior completion rates among those participating in the Meru Health program would prevail.
- Cooper, A. A. & Conklin, L. R. (2015). Dropout from individual psychotherapy for major depression: A meta-analysis of randomized clinical trials. Clinical Psychology Review, 40, 57-65.
- Rutherford, B. R., Cooper, T. M., Persaud, A., Brown, P. J., Sneed, J. R., & Roose, S. P. (2013). Less is more in antidepressant clinical trials: a meta-analysis of the effect of visit frequency on treatment response and drop-out. The Journal of clinical psychiatry, 74(7), 703.
HRV biofeedback for depression and anxiety
Meru Health is the first company to combine HRV-Biofeedback into a remote and clinician supported treatment program for depression and anxiety. Meru Health has worked with leading academia and researchers to prove the efficacy, safety and feasibility of this approach. Below you’ll find a poster that was presented in March 2019 at the annual biofeedback conference of The Association for Applied Psychophysiology and Biofeedback (AAPB).
Meru Health has published a controlled, peer-reviewed study on the feasibility and efficacy of the addition of heart rate variability biofeedback to the Meru Health program’s digital health intervention for depression. The published paper can be found below.
Dr. Inna Khazan, faculty at Harvard Medical School, licensed clinical psychologist, board certified in biofeedback, Clinical Advisor at Meru Health
“There is a technique that has been showing some really promising results in treating patients with depression, anxiety, and burnout called heart rate variability biofeedback (HRV-B). Briefly, heart rate variability (HRV) measures the difference in time that passes from one heart beat to the next. HRV is an important indicator of your body’s ability to regulate itself, during times of stress and during times of relaxation. This ability to self-regulate includes regulation of your moods and emotions. People with various medical and/or mental health problems, such as depression and anxiety, tend to have low HRV, which means that their bodies have trouble regulating themselves at times of stress and allowing them to recover properly during times of relaxation.
HRV-B strengthens your body’s ability to regulate your physical and emotional activation, allowing you to respond to stressful situations in healthier ways. HRV-B involves learning a special breathing technique which increases your HRV, and then practicing this technique while monitoring your progress with a device that measures different aspects of HRV. Regular practice of HRV-B can strengthen your ability to respond to stressful situations in more helpful ways and recover more quickly when they are over. Several studies have shown the benefits of using HRV-B to treat people who have high levels of depression, anxiety, and other types of stress.”
Program engagement
Patients are strongly engaged with the Meru Health program and rate Meru Health therapists highly. Meru Health therapists and psychiatrists monitor patients and engage patients almost on a daily basis.
Average therapist rating
4.5/5
On average participants rate their therapist highly 4.5/5 on a scale of 1-5.
Average engagement
4.4/7
On average participants engage with the program on 4.4 days out of 7 throughout the 12-week program
Time spent in treatment
15h
On average, participants spend 20-25 hours interacting with their therapist or treatment practices. This equals to 25-30 in-person therapy visits.
Research Pipeline
Meru Health has several cutting-edge research projects in various stages of development with collaborators around the globe.
Published Peer-Reviewed Studies
Predicting Therapy Outcome in a Digital Mental Health Intervention for Depression and Anxiety: A Machine Learning Approach - Hornstein S, Forman-Hoffman V, Nazander A, Ranta K, Hilbert K
Effects of Mobile App-Based Intervention for Depression in Middle-Aged and Older Adults: Mixed Methods Feasibility Study - Gould CE, Carlson C, Ma F, Forman-Hoffman V, Ranta K, Kuhn E
Significant Reduction in Depressive Symptoms Among Patients With Moderately-severe to Severe Depressive Symptoms After Participation in a Therapist-supported, Evidence-based Mobile Health Program Delivered via a Smartphone App
- Forman-Hoffman V, Nelson B, Ranta K, Nazander A, Hilgert O, de Quevedo J
A Therapist-guided Smartphone App for Major Depression in Young Adults: A Randomized Clinical Trial - Raevuori A, Vahlberg T, Korhonen T, Hilgert O, Aittakumpu-Hyden R, Forman-Hoffman
Smartphone-Delivered Therapist-Supported Digital Health Intervention for Physicians with Burnout - Huang F, Dillon E, Goldin P, Raevuori A, Hilgert O, Ranta K, Nazander A, Connolly S, Vähämäki V & Forman-Hoffman V
Feasibility and Efficacy of the Addition of Heart Rate Variability Biofeedback to a Remote Digital Health Intervention for Depression - Economides M, Lehrer P, Ranta K, Nazander A, Hilgert O, Raevuori A, Gevirtz R, Khazan I & Forman-Hoffman V
Long-Term Outcomes of a Therapist-Supported, Smartphone-Based Intervention for Elevated Symptoms of Depression and Anxiety: Quasiexperimental, Pre-Postintervention Study - Economides M, Ranta K, Nazander A, Hilgert O, Goldin PR, Raevuori A, Forman-Hoffman V
A Feasibility of a Therapist-Supported, Mobile Phone–Delivered Online Intervention for Depression: Longitudinal Observational Study - Goldin PR, Lindholm R, Ranta K, Hilgert O, Helteenvuori T, Raevuori
White Papers & Posters
Stanford University & Harvard University
Harvard University & University of Helsinki
Greater mental health for everyone.
