1 526 127 COMPARISON OF LAUGHTER YOGA AND ANTI-ANXIETY MEDICATION ON ANXIETY AND GASTROINTESTINAL SYMPTOMS OF PATIENTS WITH IRRITABLE BOWEL SYNDROME. BACKGROUND IRRITABLE BOWEL SYNDROME (IBS) IS THE MOST COMMON CHRONIC GASTROINTESTINAL (GI) DISORDER. PATIENTS WITH IBS USUALLY SUFFER FROM ANXIETY AND DEPRESSION. A COMBINATION OF PSYCHOLOGICAL APPROACHES AND PHARMACOLOGICAL TREATMENTS CAN BE A SIGNIFICANTLY EFFECTIVE TREATMENT FOR IBS. THE MAIN OBJECTIVE OF THE PRESENT STUDY WAS TO PROVIDE A THERAPEUTIC PLAN BASED ON LAUGHTER YOGA AND ANTI-ANXIETY MEDICATION, EMPLOYED FOR THE VERY FIRST TIME, AND TO DETERMINE THE EFFECTIVENESS OF THESE TREATMENTS ON THE ANXIETY AND GI SYMPTOMS OF PATIENTS WITH IBS. METHODS IN THIS RANDOMIZED, CONTROLLED, CLINICAL TRIAL, THE PARTICIPANTS WERE 60 PATIENTS SELECTED FROM THOSE WHO REFERRED TO THE GI CLINIC OF VALI-ASR HOSPITAL (BIRJAND, IRAN) DURING THE STUDY PERIOD (APRIL 2017 TO MARCH 2017) AND WERE DIAGNOSED AS HAVING IBS BASED ON ROME III CRITERIA. THE PARTICIPANTS WERE RANDOMLY ASSIGNED TO EITHER THE LAUGHTER YOGA GROUP, THE ANTI-ANXIETY MEDICATION GROUP, OR THE SYMPTOMATIC TREATMENT (CONTROL) GROUP. SEVERITY LEVELS OF ANXIETY AND GI SYMPTOMS BEFORE AND AFTER INTERVENTION WERE DETERMINED AND COMPARED AMONG THESE THREE GROUPS ACCORDING TO APPROVED PROTOCOLS. RESULTS THE SEVERITY OF IBS SYMPTOMS AFTER THE INTERVENTIONS WAS MORE GREATLY REDUCED IN THE LAUGHTER YOGA GROUP THAN IN THE ANTI-ANXIETY MEDICATION AND CONTROL GROUPS (P = 0.006). THE SEVERITY OF ANXIETY AFTER INTERVENTIONS DECREASED IN ALL THREE GROUPS, ESPECIALLY IN THE YOGA TREATMENT GROUP, BUT THE DIFFERENCE WAS NOT STATISTICALLY SIGNIFICANT (P = 0.1). CONCLUSION LAUGHTER YOGA IS MORE EFFECTIVE THAN ANTI-ANXIETY MEDICATION IN REDUCING THE GI SYMPTOMS OF PATIENTS WITH IBS. THEREFORE, APPLYING LAUGHTER YOGA ALONG WITH COMMON PHARMACOLOGICAL THERAPIES FOR PATIENTS WITH IBS MIGHT BE STRONGLY ADVISED. 2019 2 1960 53 SELF-REGULATION EVALUATION OF THERAPEUTIC YOGA AND WALKING FOR PATIENTS WITH IRRITABLE BOWEL SYNDROME: A PILOT STUDY. WITH LIMITED EFFICACY OF MEDICATIONS FOR SYMPTOM RELIEF, NON-MEDICATION TREATMENTS MAY PLAY AN IMPORTANT ROLE IN THE TREATMENT OF IRRITABLE BOWEL SYNDROME (IBS), THE MOST COMMON FUNCTIONAL GASTROINTESTINAL (GI) DISORDER. THIS STUDY AIMED TO EVALUATE THE EFFICACY OF TWO SELF-REGULATION STRATEGIES FOR SYMPTOM RELIEF AND MOOD MANAGEMENT IN IBS PATIENTS. THIRTY-FIVE ADULT PARTICIPANTS MEETING ROME III CRITERIA FOR IBS WERE ENROLLED, 27 OF THE 35 PARTICIPANTS (77%) COMPLETED TREATMENT AND PRE- AND POST-TREATMENT VISITS (89% WOMEN, 11% MEN; M (SD) AGE = 36 (13)), AND 20 OF THE 27 (74%) COMPLETED A 6-MONTH FOLLOW-UP. PARTICIPANTS WERE RANDOMLY ASSIGNED TO 16 BIWEEKLY GROUP SESSIONS OF IYENGAR YOGA OR A WALKING PROGRAM. RESULTS INDICATED A SIGNIFICANT GROUP BY TIME INTERACTION ON NEGATIVE AFFECT WITH THE WALKING TREATMENT SHOWING IMPROVEMENT FROM PRE- TO POST-TREATMENT WHEN COMPARED TO YOGA (P < .05). THERE WAS NO SIGNIFICANT GROUP BY TIME EFFECT ON IBS SEVERITY. EXPLORATORY ANALYSES OF SECONDARY OUTCOMES EXAMINED CHANGE SEPARATELY FOR EACH TREATMENT CONDITION. FROM PRE- TO POST-TREATMENT, YOGA SHOWED SIGNIFICANT DECREASES IN IBS SEVERITY MEASURES (P < .05), VISCERAL SENSITIVITY (P < .05), AND SEVERITY OF SOMATIC SYMPTOMS (P < .05). WALKING SHOWED SIGNIFICANT DECREASES IN OVERALL GI SYMPTOMS (P < .05), NEGATIVE AFFECT (P < .05), AND STATE ANXIETY (P < .05). AT 6-MONTH FOLLOW-UP, OVERALL GI SYMPTOMS FOR WALKING CONTINUED TO SIGNIFICANTLY DECLINE, WHILE FOR YOGA, GI SYMPTOMS REBOUNDED TOWARD BASELINE LEVELS (P < .05). WHEN ASKED ABOUT SELF-REGULATED HOME PRACTICE AT 6 MONTHS, SIGNIFICANTLY MORE PARTICIPANTS IN WALKING THAN IN YOGA PRACTICED AT LEAST WEEKLY (P < .05). IN SUM, RESULTS SUGGEST THAT YOGA AND WALKING AS MOVEMENT-BASED SELF-REGULATORY BEHAVIORAL TREATMENTS HAVE SOME DIFFERENTIAL EFFECTS BUT ARE BOTH BENEFICIAL FOR IBS PATIENTS, THOUGH MAINTENANCE OF A SELF-REGULATED WALKING PROGRAM MAY BE MORE FEASIBLE AND THEREFORE MORE EFFECTIVE LONG TERM. 2016 3 194 45 A RANDOMIZED TRIAL OF YOGA FOR ADOLESCENTS WITH IRRITABLE BOWEL SYNDROME. BACKGROUND: ADOLESCENTS WITH IRRITABLE BOWEL SYNDROME (IBS) FREQUENTLY EXPERIENCE INTERFERENCE WITH EVERYDAY ACTIVITIES. MIND-BODY APPROACHES SUCH AS YOGA HAVE BEEN RECOMMENDED AS INTERVENTIONS FOR PATIENTS WITH IBS. DESPITE PROMISING RESULTS AMONG ADULT SAMPLES, THERE HAVE BEEN LIMITED STUDIES EXPLORING THE EFFICACY OF YOGA WITH PEDIATRIC PATIENTS. OBJECTIVE: TO CONDUCT A PRELIMINARY RANDOMIZED STUDY OF YOGA AS TREATMENT FOR ADOLESCENTS WITH IBS. METHODS: TWENTY-FIVE ADOLESCENTS AGED 11 TO 18 YEARS WITH IBS WERE RANDOMLY ASSIGNED TO EITHER A YOGA OR WAIT LIST CONTROL GROUP. BEFORE THE INTERVENTION, BOTH GROUPS COMPLETED QUESTIONNAIRES ASSESSING GASTROINTESTINAL SYMPTOMS, PAIN, FUNCTIONAL DISABILITY, COPING, ANXIETY AND DEPRESSION. THE YOGA INTERVENTION CONSISTED OF A 1 H INSTRUCTIONAL SESSION, DEMONSTRATION AND PRACTICE, FOLLOWED BY FOUR WEEKS OF DAILY HOME PRACTICE GUIDED BY A VIDEO. AFTER FOUR WEEKS, ADOLESCENTS REPEATED THE BASELINE QUESTIONNAIRES. THE WAIT LIST CONTROL GROUP THEN RECEIVED THE YOGA INTERVENTION AND FOUR WEEKS LATER COMPLETED AN ADDITIONAL SET OF QUESTIONNAIRES. RESULTS: ADOLESCENTS IN THE YOGA GROUP REPORTED LOWER LEVELS OF FUNCTIONAL DISABILITY, LESS USE OF EMOTION-FOCUSED AVOIDANCE AND LOWER ANXIETY FOLLOWING THE INTERVENTION THAN ADOLESCENTS IN THE CONTROL GROUP. WHEN THE PRE- AND POSTINTERVENTION DATA FOR THE TWO GROUPS WERE COMBINED, ADOLESCENTS HAD SIGNIFICANTLY LOWER SCORES FOR GASTROINTESTINAL SYMPTOMS AND EMOTION-FOCUSED AVOIDANCE FOLLOWING THE YOGA INTERVENTION. ADOLESCENTS FOUND THE YOGA TO BE HELPFUL AND INDICATED THEY WOULD CONTINUE TO USE IT TO MANAGE THEIR IBS. CONCLUSIONS: YOGA HOLDS PROMISE AS AN INTERVENTION FOR ADOLESCENTS WITH IBS. 2006 4 1542 32 KRIYA YOGA IN PATIENTS WITH DEPRESSIVE DISORDERS: A PILOT STUDY. BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES DESPITE THE EASY ACCEPTABILITY AND HOLISTIC NATURE OF KRIYA YOGA, THERE ARE NO STUDIES EVALUATING THE ROLE OF KRIYA YOGA INTERVENTION ON DEPRESSION. THE OBJECTIVE OF THE CURRENT STUDY WAS TO ASSESS THE FEASIBILITY AND EFFECT OF ADJUNCTIVE KRIYA YOGA ON DEPRESSION. METHODS PATIENTS WITH MAJOR DEPRESSIVE DISORDER WHO OPTED FOR KRIYA YOGA WERE RECRUITED INTO THE INTERVENTION GROUP (ADJUNCTIVE KRIYA YOGA) AND THOSE ON PSYCHOTROPIC MEDICATION ALONE WERE ENROLLED INTO THE CONTROL GROUP. THE HAMILTON DEPRESSION RATING SCALE (HDRS) MEASUREMENTS WERE RECORDED AT BASELINE, END OF 2, 4, AND 8 WEEKS. RESULTS HDRS SCORES OF THE INTERVENTION GROUP ( N = 29) WERE FOUND TO BE SIGNIFICANTLY LESSER THAN THAT OF THE CONTROL GROUP ( N = 52) BY THE END OF 2, 4, AND 8 WEEKS. THE REMISSION RATE WAS ALSO SIGNIFICANTLY GREATER IN THE INTERVENTION GROUP. CONCLUSION KRIYA YOGA INTERVENTION WAS FOUND TO BE FEASIBLE, AS WELL AS IMPROVED THE SEVERITY OF DEPRESSION. 2021 5 2235 32 THE IMPACT OF YOGA UPON FEMALE PATIENTS SUFFERING FROM HYPOTHYROIDISM. OBJECTIVE: TO STUDY THE EFFECT OF YOGA ON THE QUALITY OF LIFE OF FEMALE HYPOTHYROID PATIENTS. DESIGN: THE WHO QUALITY OF LIFE SCALE(22) WAS USED TO ASSESS THE QUALITY OF LIFE OF 20 FEMALE HYPOTHYROID PATIENTS. SUBJECTS ATTENDED ONE HOUR YOGA SESSIONS DAILY FOR A PERIOD OF ONE MONTH. A PRETEST-POST-TEST RESEARCH DESIGN WAS USED FOR DATA ANALYSIS. RESULTS: PATIENTS' QUALITY OF LIFE SCORES FOLLOWING THE YOGA PROGRAM WERE GREATER THAN SCORES OBTAINED PRIOR TO UNDERTAKING YOGA (P < 0.01). PATIENTS ALSO REPORTED SIGNIFICANT IMPROVEMENT IN THEIR PERCEPTION OF THE OVERALL QUALITY OF LIFE AND OF THEIR HEALTH POST YOGA INTERVENTION. CONCLUSIONS: IT CAN BE CONCLUDED THAT YOGA IS VALUABLE IN HELPING THE HYPOTHYROID PATIENTS TO MANAGE THEIR DISEASE-RELATED SYMPTOMS. YOGA MAY BE CONSIDERED AS SUPPORTIVE OR COMPLEMENTARY THERAPY IN CONJUNCTION WITH MEDICAL THERAPY FOR THE TREATMENT OF HYPOTHYROID DISORDER. 2011 6 1556 40 LONG-TERM CHANGES OF SYMPTOMS OF ANXIETY, DEPRESSION, AND FATIGUE IN CANCER PATIENTS 6 MONTHS AFTER THE END OF YOGA THERAPY. BACKGROUND: SYMPTOMS OF ANXIETY, DEPRESSION, AND CANCER-RELATED FATIGUE ARE COMMONLY ASSOCIATED WITH CANCER. CANCER PATIENTS INCREASINGLY USE COMPLEMENTARY AND ALTERNATIVE TREATMENTS, SUCH AS YOGA, TO COPE WITH PSYCHOLOGICAL AND PHYSICAL IMPAIRMENTS. IN THE PRESENT ARTICLE, LONG-TERM CHANGES OF ANXIETY, DEPRESSION, AND FATIGUE IN CANCER ARE EXAMINED 6 MONTHS AFTER A YOGA INTERVENTION. METHOD: WE USED AN OBSERVATIONAL DESIGN BASED ON A RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED STUDY IN CANCER PATIENTS WITH MIXED DIAGNOSES TO EVALUATE LONG-TERM CHANGES OF SYMPTOMS OF ANXIETY, DEPRESSION, AND FATIGUE 6 MONTHS AFTER THE END OF YOGA THERAPY. WE MEASURED ANXIETY SYMPTOMS WITH THE GENERALIZED ANXIETY DISORDER SCALE (GAD-7), DEPRESSIVE SYMPTOMS WITH THE PATIENT HEALTH QUESTIONNAIRE-2 (PHQ-2), AND FATIGUE WITH THE EUROPEAN ORGANIZATION FOR RESEARCH AND TREATMENT OF CANCER QUALITY OF LIFE QUESTIONNAIRE-FATIGUE SCALE (EORTC QLQ-FA13). YOGA THERAPY WAS PROVIDED IN YOGA CLASSES OF 60 MINUTES EACH ONCE A WEEK FOR 8 WEEKS IN TOTAL. THE EXERCISES PROVIDED CONTAINED BOTH BODY AND BREATHING ACTIVITIES AS WELL AS MEDITATION. RESULTS: A TOTAL OF 58 PATIENTS PARTICIPATED IN THE STUDY. SIX MONTHS AFTER THE END OF YOGA THERAPY, SYMPTOMS OF ANXIETY, DEPRESSION, AND FATIGUE WERE SIGNIFICANTLY REDUCED COMPARED WITH BASELINE. HOWEVER, SYMPTOMS OF ANXIETY AND FATIGUE SLIGHTLY INCREASED DURING THE FOLLOW-UP PERIOD, WHEREAS SYMPTOMS OF DEPRESSION REMAINED STABLE. CONCLUSION: OUR RESULTS ARE PROMISING AND SUPPORT THE INTEGRATION OF YOGA INTERVENTIONS IN SUPPORTIVE CANCER TREATMENT CONCEPTS BUT SHOULD BE CONFIRMED BY RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED TRIALS. LONG-TERM EFFECTS OF YOGA THERAPY ON CANCER PATIENTS SHOULD BE THE SUBJECT OF FURTHER RESEARCH. 2019 7 2119 32 THE EFFECT OF YOGA THERAPY ON SELECTED PSYCHOLOGICAL VARIABLES AMONG MALE PATIENTS WITH INSOMNIA. BACKGROUND: AN ESTIMATED 30-50% OF THE GENERAL POPULATION IS AFFECTED BY INSOMNIA AND 10% HAVE CHRONIC INSOMNIA. YOGA THERAPY IS BENEFICIAL IN SUCH DISORDERS AND IT HAS FEWER SIDE EFFECTS. AIM: THE AIM OF THIS STUDY WAS TO FIND OUT THE EFFECT OF YOGA THERAPY ON SELECTED PSYCHOLOGICAL VARIABLES AMONG MEN WITH INSOMNIA. METHODS: FORTY MALES WITH INSOMNIA WERE DIVIDED RANDOMLY INTO 2 GROUPS (THE EXPERIMENTAL AND THE CONTROL GROUPS). THE EXPERIMENTAL GROUP RECEIVED EIGHT WEEKS OF YOGA THERAPY, WHILE THE CONTROL GROUP DID NOT RECEIVE ANY THERAPY. THE PRE AND POST TREATMENT STRESS AND THE SELF CONFIDENCE SCORES WERE TAKEN. RESULTS: THERE WAS A SIGNIFICANT IMPROVEMENT IN THE STRESS SCORES AND THE SELF CONFIDENCE SCORES IN THE EXPERIMENTAL GROUP. THERE WERE NEITHER ANY SIDE EFFECTS NOR ANY DROP OUTS. CONCLUSION: WE CONCLUDE THAT YOGA IS AN EFFECTIVE TREATMENT OPTION FOR THE PATIENTS WITH INSOMNIA. THERE ARE NO MAJOR SIDE EFFECTS. 2013 8 1076 45 EFFECTS OF YOGA ON PHYSIOLOGICAL INDICES, ANXIETY AND SOCIAL FUNCTIONING IN MULTIPLE SCLEROSIS PATIENTS: A RANDOMIZED TRIAL. INTRODUCTION: MULTIPLE SCLEROSIS (MS) AS A CHRONIC DISEASE COULD AFFECT PATIENTS' VARIOUS DOMAINS OF LIFE. AIM: THIS STUDY WAS CONDUCTED TO STUDY THE EFFECT OF YOGA ON THE PHYSIOLOGICAL INDICES, ANXIETY AND SOCIAL FUNCTIONING OF PATIENTS WITH MS IN SOUTHWEST, IRAN. MATERIALS AND METHODS: IN THIS CLINICAL TRIAL STUDY, 60 MS PATIENTS WERE ENROLLED ACCORDING TO INCLUSION CRITERIA AND RANDOMLY ASSIGNED TO TWO GROUPS OF 30 EACH. PRIOR TO AND AFTER INTERVENTION, THE PATIENTS' VITAL SIGNS WERE MEASURED. FOR CASE GROUP YOGA EXERCISES WERE PERFORMED THREE SESSIONS A WEEK FOR 12 WEEKS WHILE CONTROL GROUP PERFORMED NO EXERCISE. THE DATA WERE GATHERED BY QUESTIONNAIRE AND ANALYSED BY DESCRIPTIVE AND ANALYTICAL STATISTICS IN SPSS. RESULTS: PRIOR TO INTERVENTION, THERE WAS NO SIGNIFICANT DIFFERENCE IN FATIGUE SEVERITY AND PAIN BETWEEN THE TWO GROUPS BUT THE MEAN FATIGUE SEVERITY AND PAIN IN CASE GROUP DECREASED COMPARED TO THE CONTROL GROUP AFTER THE INTERVENTION. PRIOR TO INTERVENTION, THERE WAS NO SIGNIFICANT DIFFERENCE IN MEAN PHYSIOLOGICAL INDICES BETWEEN THE TWO GROUPS BUT THE MEAN PHYSIOLOGICAL INDICES IN CASE GROUP DECREASED SIGNIFICANTLY AFTER THE INTERVENTION (P<0.05). CONCLUSION: YOGA IS LIKELY TO INCREASE SELF-EFFICACY OF MS PATIENTS THROUGH ENHANCING PHYSICAL ACTIVITY, INCREASING THE STRENGTH OF LOWER LIMBS AND BALANCE, AND DECREASING FATIGUE AND PAIN, AND FINALLY TO PROMOTE SOCIAL FUNCTIONING AND TO RELIEVE STRESS AND ANXIETY IN THESE PATIENTS. 2016 9 2080 46 THE EFFECT OF GROUP MINDFULNESS - BASED STRESS REDUCTION PROGRAM AND CONSCIOUS YOGA ON THE FATIGUE SEVERITY AND GLOBAL AND SPECIFIC LIFE QUALITY IN WOMEN WITH BREAST CANCER. BACKGROUND: CANCER IS NOT MERELY AN EVENT WITH A CERTAIN END, BUT IT IS A PERMANENT AND VAGUE SITUATION THAT IS DETERMINED BY DELAYED EFFECTS DUE TO THE DISEASE, ITS TREATMENT AND ITS RELATED PSYCHOLOGICAL ISSUES. THE AIM OF THIS STUDY WAS TO EXAMINE THE EFFECTIVENESS OF THE MINDFULNESS-BASED STRESS REDUCTION PROGRAM AND CONSCIOUS YOGA ON THE MENTAL FATIGUE SEVERITY AND LIFE QUALITY OF WOMEN WITH BREAST CANCER. METHODS: THIS WAS A QUASI-EXPERIMENTAL STUDY WITH A PRE-TEST, POST-TEST AND CONTROL GROUP. IN THIS STUDY, 24 PATIENTS WITH THE DIAGNOSIS OF BREAST CANCER WERE SELECTED AMONG THE PATIENTS WHO REFERRED TO THE DIVISION OF ONCOLOGY AND RADIOTHERAPY OF IMAM HOSSEIN HOSPITAL IN TEHRAN USING AVAILABLE SAMPLING METHOD, AND WERE RANDOMLY ASSIGNED INTO THE EXPERIMENTAL AND CONTROL GROUPS. ALL THE PARTICIPANTS COMPLETED THE FATIGUE SEVERITY SCALE, GLOBAL LIFE QUALITY OF CANCER PATIENT AND SPECIFIC LIFE QUALITY OF CANCER PATIENT QUESTIONNAIRES. DATA WERE ANALYZED BY MULTIVARIATE REPEATED MEASUREMENT VARIANCE ANALYSIS MODEL. RESULTS: FINDINGS REVEALED THAT THE MINDFULNESS-BASED STRESS REDUCTION TREATMENT SIGNIFICANTLY IMPROVED THE OVERALL QUALITY OF LIFE, ROLE, COGNITIVE, EMOTION, SOCIAL FUNCTIONS AND PAIN AND FATIGUE SYMPTOMS IN GLOBAL LIFE QUALITY IN THE EXPERIMENTAL GROUP. IT ALSO SIGNIFICANTLY IMPROVED THE BODY IMAGE, FUTURE FUNCTIONS AND THERAPY SIDE EFFECTS IN SPECIFIC LIFE QUALITY OF THE EXPERIMENTAL GROUP COMPARED TO THE CONTROL GROUP. IN ADDITION, FATIGUE SEVERITY CAUSED BY CANCER WAS REDUCED SIGNIFICANTLY. CONCLUSION: THE RESULTS SHOWED THAT THE MINDFULNESS - BASED STRESS REDUCTION TREATMENT CAN BE EFFECTIVE IN IMPROVING GLOBAL AND SPECIFIC LIFE QUALITY AND FATIGUE SEVERITY IN WOMEN WITH BREAST CANCER. 2015 10 877 42 EFFECT OF YOGA THERAPY ON SYMPTOMS OF ANXIETY IN CANCER PATIENTS. BACKGROUND: MANY CANCER PATIENTS SUFFER FROM SYMPTOMS OF ANXIETY, DEPRESSION, AND FATIGUE. SUPPORTIVE TREATMENTS ARE INCREASINGLY USED TO ALLEVIATE DISTRESS IN CANCER. IN THIS STUDY, THE EFFECTS OF YOGA ON THESE SYMPTOMS ARE EXAMINED. METHODS: WE PERFORMED A RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED STUDY ON CANCER PATIENTS WITH MIXED DIAGNOSES COMPARING YOGA THERAPY WITH A WAITING LIST CONTROL GROUP. WE MEASURED ANXIETY SYMPTOMS WITH THE GENERAL ANXIETY DISORDER (GAD-7) SCALE, DEPRESSIVE SYMPTOMS WITH THE PATIENT HEALTH QUESTIONNAIRE-2 (PHQ-2), AND FATIGUE WITH THE EUROPEAN ORGANISATION FOR RESEARCH AND TREATMENT OF CANCER FATIGUE SCALE (EORTC QLQ-FA13). YOGA THERAPY WAS CARRIED OUT IN WEEKLY SESSIONS OF 60 MIN EACH FOR 8 WEEKS. THE PROGRAM PROVIDED RESTRAINED BODY AND BREATHING EXERCISES AS WELL AS MEDITATION. THE CONTROL GROUP DID NOT RECEIVE ANY YOGA THERAPY WHILE ON THE WAITING LIST. RESULTS: A TOTAL OF 70 SUBJECTS PARTICIPATED IN THE STUDY. ANXIETY WAS SIGNIFICANTLY REDUCED BY THE YOGA THERAPY IN THE INTERVENTION GROUP COMPARED TO THE CONTROL GROUP (P = 0.005). HOWEVER, YOGA THERAPY DID NOT SHOW ANY SIGNIFICANT EFFECTS ON DEPRESSION (P = 0.21) AND FATIGUE (P = 0.11) COMPARED TO THE CONTROL GROUP. CONCLUSION: YOGA THERAPY MAY BE USED TO ALLEVIATE ANXIETY SYMPTOMS IN CANCER PATIENTS AND SHOULD BE THE SUBJECT OF FURTHER RESEARCH. 2018 11 1585 42 MEDICAL YOGA FOR PATIENTS WITH STRESS-RELATED SYMPTOMS AND DIAGNOSES IN PRIMARY HEALTH CARE: A RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED TRIAL. AN INCREASING NUMBER OF PATIENTS ARE SUFFERING FROM STRESS-RELATED SYMPTOMS AND DIAGNOSES. THE PURPOSE OF THIS STUDY WAS TO EVALUATE THE MEDICAL YOGA TREATMENT IN PATIENTS WITH STRESS-RELATED SYMPTOMS AND DIAGNOSES IN PRIMARY HEALTH CARE. A RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED STUDY WAS PERFORMED AT A PRIMARY HEALTH CARE CENTRE IN SWEDEN FROM MARCH TO JUNE, 2011. PATIENTS WERE RANDOMLY ALLOCATED TO A CONTROL GROUP RECEIVING STANDARD CARE OR A YOGA GROUP TREATED WITH MEDICAL YOGA FOR 1 HOUR, ONCE A WEEK, OVER A 12-WEEK PERIOD IN ADDITION TO THE STANDARD CARE. A TOTAL OF 37 MEN AND WOMEN, MEAN AGE OF 53 +/- 12 YEARS WERE INCLUDED. GENERAL STRESS LEVEL (MEASURED USING PERCEIVED STRESS SCALE (PSS)), BURNOUT (SHIROM-MELAMED BURNOUT QUESTIONNAIRE (SMBQ)), ANXIETY AND DEPRESSION (HOSPITAL ANXIETY AND DEPRESSION SCALE (HADS)), INSOMNIA SEVERITY (INSOMNIA SEVERITY INDEX (ISI)), PAIN (VISUAL ANALOGUE SCALE (VAS)), AND OVERALL HEALTH STATUS (EURO QUALITY OF LIFE VAS (EQ-VAS)) WERE MEASURED BEFORE AND AFTER 12 WEEKS. PATIENTS ASSIGNED TO THE YOGA GROUP SHOWED SIGNIFICANTLY GREATER IMPROVEMENTS ON MEASURES OF GENERAL STRESS LEVEL (P < 0.000), ANXIETY (P < 0.019), AND OVERALL HEALTH STATUS (P < 0.018) COMPARED TO CONTROLS. TREATMENT WITH MEDICAL YOGA IS EFFECTIVE IN REDUCING LEVELS OF STRESS AND ANXIETY IN PATIENTS WITH STRESS-RELATED SYMPTOMS IN PRIMARY HEALTH CARE. 2013 12 115 34 A PILOT STUDY OF A YOGA INTERVENTION FOR THE TREATMENT OF ANXIETY IN YOUNG PEOPLE WITH EARLY PSYCHOSIS. BACKGROUND: ANXIETY IS COMMON IN YOUNG PEOPLE WITH EARLY PSYCHOSIS AND TREATMENT OPTIONS FOR THIS CO-MORBIDITY REMAIN LIMITED. YOGA IS A PROMISING ADJUNCT INTERVENTION THAT HAS BEEN SHOWN TO REDUCE ANXIETY FOR ADULTS WITH SCHIZOPHRENIA, THEREFORE THIS PILOT STUDY EVALUATED THE ACCEPTABILITY AND POTENTIAL EFFECTIVENESS OF YOGA FOR ANXIETY IN EARLY PSYCHOSIS. METHODS: A PROSPECTIVE SINGLE ARM PILOT STUDY OF A YOGA INTERVENTION WAS CONDUCTED WITHIN AN EARLY INTERVENTION FOR PSYCHOSIS SERVICE. RATES OF ATTENDANCE, AS WELL AS SYMPTOMS OF ANXIETY PRE AND POST YOGA SESSION WERE MEASURED. RESULTS: A TOTAL OF 14 YOUNG PEOPLE PARTICIPATED IN THE STUDY AND OVER 70% ATTENDED HALF OR MORE OF THE YOGA SESSIONS OFFERED. SIGNIFICANT TRANSIENT REDUCTION IN STATE ANXIETY AFTER A SINGLE SESSION OF YOGA WAS OBSERVED (P < 0.01). CONCLUSIONS: YOGA WAS FOUND TO BE AN ACCEPTABLE AND POTENTIALLY EFFECTIVE ADJUNCTIVE TREATMENT FOR ANXIETY IN EARLY PSYCHOSIS AND THE RESULTS WARRANT FURTHER CLINICAL TRIALS. 2022 13 2521 46 YOGA DECREASES INSOMNIA IN POSTMENOPAUSAL WOMEN: A RANDOMIZED CLINICAL TRIAL. OBJECTIVE: THE PRACTICE OF YOGA HAS BEEN PROVEN TO HAVE POSITIVE EFFECTS ON REDUCING INSOMNIA. STUDIES HAVE ALSO SHOWN ITS EFFECTS ON REDUCING CLIMACTERIC SYMPTOMS. TO DATE, HOWEVER, NO STUDIES THAT EVALUATE THE EFFECTS OF YOGA ON POSTMENOPAUSAL WOMEN WITH A DIAGNOSIS OF INSOMNIA IN A RANDOMIZED CLINICAL TRIAL HAVE BEEN CONDUCTED. THE AIM OF THIS STUDY WAS TO EVALUATE THE EFFECT OF YOGA PRACTICE ON THE PHYSICAL AND MENTAL HEALTH AND CLIMACTERIC SYMPTOMS OF POSTMENOPAUSAL WOMEN WITH A DIAGNOSIS OF INSOMNIA. METHODS: POSTMENOPAUSAL WOMEN NOT UNDERGOING HORMONE THERAPY, WHO WERE 50 TO 65 YEARS OLD, WHO HAD AN APNEA-HYPOPNEA INDEX LESS THAN 15, AND WHO HAD A DIAGNOSIS OF INSOMNIA WERE RANDOMLY ASSIGNED TO ONE OF THREE GROUPS, AS FOLLOWS: CONTROL, PASSIVE STRETCHING, AND YOGA. QUESTIONNAIRES WERE ADMINISTERED BEFORE AND 4 MONTHS AFTER THE INTERVENTION TO EVALUATE QUALITY OF LIFE, ANXIETY AND DEPRESSION SYMPTOMS, CLIMACTERIC SYMPTOMS, INSOMNIA SEVERITY, DAYTIME SLEEPINESS, AND STRESS. THE VOLUNTEERS ALSO UNDERWENT POLYSOMNOGRAPHY. THE STUDY LASTED 4 MONTHS. RESULTS: THERE WERE 44 VOLUNTEERS AT THE END OF THE STUDY. WHEN COMPARED WITH THE CONTROL GROUP, THE YOGA GROUP HAD SIGNIFICANTLY LOWER POSTTREATMENT SCORES FOR CLIMACTERIC SYMPTOMS AND INSOMNIA SEVERITY AND HIGHER SCORES FOR QUALITY OF LIFE AND RESISTANCE PHASE OF STRESS. THE REDUCTION IN INSOMNIA SEVERITY IN THE YOGA GROUP WAS SIGNIFICANTLY HIGHER THAN THAT IN THE CONTROL AND PASSIVE-STRETCHING GROUPS. CONCLUSIONS: THIS STUDY SHOWED THAT A SPECIFIC SEQUENCE OF YOGA MIGHT BE EFFECTIVE IN REDUCING INSOMNIA AND MENOPAUSAL SYMPTOMS AS WELL AS IMPROVING QUALITY OF LIFE IN POSTMENOPAUSAL WOMEN WITH INSOMNIA. 2012 14 1056 45 EFFECTS OF YOGA ON DEPRESSION AND ANXIETY OF WOMEN. UNLABELLED: YOGA HAS OFTEN BEEN PERCEIVED AS A METHOD OF STRESS MANAGEMENT TOOL THAT CAN ASSIST IN ALLEVIATING DEPRESSION AND ANXIETY DISORDERS. THIS STUDY SOUGHT TO EVALUATE THE INFLUENCE OF YOGA IN RELIEVING SYMPTOMS OF DEPRESSION AND ANXIETY IN WOMEN WHO WERE REFERRED TO A YOGA CLINIC. METHODS: THE STUDY INVOLVED A CONVENIENCE SAMPLE OF WOMEN WHO WERE REFERRED TO A YOGA CLINIC FROM JULY 2006 TO JULY 2007. ALL NEW CASES WERE EVALUATED ON ADMISSION USING A PERSONAL INFORMATION QUESTIONNAIRE WELL AS BECK AND SPIELBERGER TESTS. PARTICIPANTS WERE RANDOMLY ASSIGNED INTO AN EXPERIMENTAL AND A CONTROL GROUP. THE EXPERIMENTAL GROUP (N=34) PARTICIPATED IN TWICE WEEKLY YOGA CLASSES OF 90 MIN DURATION FOR TWO MONTHS. THE CONTROL GROUP (N=31) WAS ASSIGNED TO A WAITING LIST AND DID NOT RECEIVE YOGA. BOTH GROUPS WERE EVALUATED AGAIN AFTER THE TWO-MONTH STUDY PERIOD. RESULTS: THE AVERAGE PREVALENCE OF DEPRESSION IN THE EXPERIMENTAL GROUP PRE AND POST YOGA INTERVENTION WAS 12.82+/-7.9 AND 10.79+/-6.04 RESPECTIVELY, A STATISTICALLY INSIGNIFICANT DECREASE (P=0.13). HOWEVER, WHEN THE EXPERIMENTAL GROUP WAS COMPARED TO THE CONTROL GROUP, WOMEN WHO PARTICIPATED IN YOGA CLASSES SHOWED A SIGNIFICANT DECREASE IN STATE ANXIETY (P=0.03) AND TRAIT ANXIETY (P<0.001). CONCLUSIONS: PARTICIPATION IN A TWO-MONTH YOGA CLASS CAN LEAD TO SIGNIFICANT REDUCTION IN PERCEIVED LEVELS OF ANXIETY IN WOMEN WHO SUFFER FROM ANXIETY DISORDERS. THIS STUDY SUGGESTS THAT YOGA CAN BE CONSIDERED AS A COMPLEMENTARY THERAPY OR AN ALTERNATIVE METHOD FOR MEDICAL THERAPY IN THE TREATMENT OF ANXIETY DISORDERS. 2009 15 1823 46 PSYCHO-BIOLOGICAL CHANGES WITH ADD ON YOGA NIDRA IN PATIENTS WITH MENSTRUAL DISORDERS: A RANDOMIZED CLINICAL TRIAL. INTRODUCTION: MENSTRUAL DISORDERS ARE COMMON PROBLEMS AMONG WOMEN IN THE REPRODUCTIVE AGE GROUP. YUGA INTERVENTIONS MAY DECREASE THE PHYSICAL AND PSYCHOLOGICAL PROBLEMS RELATED TO MENSTRUAL DISORDERS. THE PRESENT STUDY WAS AIMED TO ASSESS THE EFFECT OF YOGA NIDRA ON PSYCHOLOGICAL PROBLEMS IN PATIENTS WITH MENSTRUAL DISORDERS. METHODS: A TOTAL NUMBER OF 100 WOMEN RECRUITED FROM THE DEPARTMENT OF OBSTETRICS AND GYNECOLOGY AND WERE THEN RANDOMLY ALLOCATED INTO TWO GROUPS: A) INTERVENTION RECEIVED YOGIC INTERVENTION AND MEDICATION FOR 6 MONTH, AND B) CONTROL GROUP RECEIVED NO YOGIC INTERVENTION AND THEY ONLY RECEIVED PRESCRIBED MEDICATION). PSYCHOLOGICAL GENERAL WELL-BEING INDEX (PGWBI) AND HORMONAL PROFILE WERE ASSESSED AT THE TIME OF BEFORE AND AFTER SIX MONTHS ON BOTH GROUPS. RESULTS: THE MEAN SCORE OF ANXIETY, DEPRESSION, POSITIVE WELL-BEING, GENERAL HEALTH, AND VITALITY SCORES, AS WELL AS HORMONAL LEVELS, IN POSTTEST WERE SIGNIFICANTLY DIFFERENT IN INTERVENTION GROUP AS COMPARED WITH PRETEST. BUT THERE WAS NO SIGNIFICANT DIFFERENCE IN CONTROL GROUP. CONCLUSION: YOGA NIDRA CAN BE A SUCCESSFUL THERAPY TO OVERCOME THE PSYCHIATRIC MORBIDITY ASSOCIATED WITH MENSTRUAL IRREGULARITIES. THEREFORE, YOGIC RELAXATION TRAINING (YOGA NIDRA) COULD BE PRESCRIBED AS AN ADJUNCT TO CONVENTIONAL DRUG THERAPY FOR MENSTRUAL DYSFUNCTION. 2016 16 1550 43 LAUGHTER YOGA VERSUS GROUP EXERCISE PROGRAM IN ELDERLY DEPRESSED WOMEN: A RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED TRIAL. BACKGROUND: LAUGHTER YOGA FOUNDED BY M. KATARIA IS A COMBINATION OF UNCONDITIONED LAUGHTER AND YOGIC BREATHING. ITS EFFECT ON MENTAL AND PHYSICAL ASPECTS OF HEALTHY INDIVIDUALS WAS SHOWN TO BE BENEFICIAL. OBJECTIVE: THE OBJECTIVE OF THIS STUDY WAS TO COMPARE THE EFFECTIVENESS OF KATARIA'S LAUGHTER YOGA AND GROUP EXERCISE THERAPY IN DECREASING DEPRESSION AND INCREASING LIFE SATISFACTION IN OLDER ADULT WOMEN OF A CULTURAL COMMUNITY OF TEHRAN, IRAN. METHODS: SEVENTY DEPRESSED OLD WOMEN WHO WERE MEMBERS OF A CULTURAL COMMUNITY OF TEHRAN WERE CHOSEN BY GERIATRIC DEPRESSION SCALE (SCORE>10). AFTER COMPLETION OF LIFE SATISFACTION SCALE PRE-TEST AND DEMOGRAPHIC QUESTIONNAIRE, SUBJECTS WERE RANDOMIZED INTO THREE GROUPS OF LAUGHTER THERAPY, EXERCISE THERAPY, AND CONTROL. SUBSEQUENTLY, DEPRESSION POST-TEST AND LIFE SATISFACTION POST-TEST WERE DONE FOR ALL THREE GROUPS. THE DATA WERE ANALYZED USING ANALYSIS OF COVARIANCE AND BONFERRONI'S CORRECTION. RESULTS: SIXTY SUBJECTS COMPLETED THE STUDY. THE ANALYSIS REVEALED A SIGNIFICANT DIFFERENCE IN DECREASE IN DEPRESSION SCORES OF BOTH LAUGHTER YOGA AND EXERCISE THERAPY GROUP IN COMPARISON TO CONTROL GROUP (P<0.001 AND P<0.01, RESPECTIVELY). THERE WAS NO SIGNIFICANT DIFFERENCE BETWEEN LAUGHTER YOGA AND EXERCISE THERAPY GROUPS. THE INCREASE IN LIFE SATISFACTION OF LAUGHTER YOGA GROUP SHOWED A SIGNIFICANT DIFFERENCE IN COMPARISON WITH CONTROL GROUP (P<0.001). NO SIGNIFICANT DIFFERENCE WAS FOUND BETWEEN EXERCISE THERAPY AND EITHER CONTROL OR LAUGHTER YOGA GROUP. CONCLUSION: OUR FINDINGS SHOWED THAT LAUGHTER YOGA IS AT LEAST AS EFFECTIVE AS GROUP EXERCISE PROGRAM IN IMPROVEMENT OF DEPRESSION AND LIFE SATISFACTION OF ELDERLY DEPRESSED WOMEN. 2011 17 2883 33 YOGA: A TOOL FOR IMPROVING THE QUALITY OF LIFE IN CHRONIC PANCREATITIS. AIM: TO DETERMINE THE EFFECTIVENESS OF YOGA ON IMPROVING THE QUALITY OF LIFE IN PATIENTS OF CHRONIC PANCREATITIS. METHODS: THE PATIENTS WERE RANDOMIZED TO TWO GROUPS. THE CONTROL GROUP CONTINUED THEIR USUAL CARE AS DIRECTED BY THEIR PHYSICIANS. PATIENTS IN THE YOGA GROUP, IN ADDITION, RECEIVED BIWEEKLY YOGA SESSIONS FOR 12 WK. THE PATIENTS' DEMOGRAPHIC AND HEALTH BEHAVIOUR VARIABLES WERE ASSESSED BEFORE AND AFTER THE YOGA PROGRAMME USING MEDICAL OUTCOMES SHORT FORM (SF-36) FOR QUALITY OF LIFE, PROFILE OF MOOD STATES FOR ASSESSING MOOD AND SYMPTOMS OF STRESS INVENTORY FOR MEASURING STRESS. RESULTS: A TOTAL OF 60 PATIENTS WERE ENROLLED, WITH 8 DROP-OUTS. THIRTY PATIENTS WERE RANDOMIZED TO THE YOGA GROUP AND 30 TO THE CONTROL GROUP. SIGNIFICANT IMPROVEMENTS WERE SEEN IN OVERALL QUALITY OF LIFE, SYMPTOMS OF STRESS, MOOD CHANGES, ALCOHOL DEPENDENCE AND APPETITE AFTER THE 12 WK PERIOD APART FROM THE GENERAL FEELING OF WELL-BEING AND DESIRE TO CONTINUE WITH THE PROGRAMME IN FUTURE IN THE YOGA GROUP, WHILE THERE WAS NO DIFFERENCE IN THE CONTROL GROUP. CONCLUSION: YOGA IS EFFECTIVE ON IMPROVING THE QUALITY OF LIFE IN PATIENTS OF CHRONIC PANCREATITIS. 2007 18 177 50 A RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED TRIAL OF MINDFULNESS VERSUS YOGA: EFFECTS ON DEPRESSION AND/OR ANXIETY IN COLLEGE STUDENTS. BACKGROUND: DEPRESSION AND ANXIETY DISORDERS ARE TWO OF THE MOST COMMON MENTAL DISORDERS IN THE UNITED STATES. THESE DISORDERS ARE PREVALENT AMONG COLLEGE STUDENTS. OBJECTIVE: THE MAIN OBJECTIVE OF THIS STUDY IS TO COMPARE THE EFFECTIVENESS OF TWO DIFFERENT TYPES OF INTERVENTION PRACTICES (MINDFULNESS VS. YOGA) AND A NONINTERVENTIONAL CONTROL GROUP IN MITIGATING THE EFFECTS OF DEPRESSION AND/OR ANXIETY IN COLLEGE STUDENTS. METHOD: A SAMPLE OF 90 STUDENTS (BOTH GENDERS) OVER AGE 18 WHO HAD A DIAGNOSIS OF ANXIETY AND/OR DEPRESSION WAS RECRUITED FROM 11,500 UNDERGRADUATE COLLEGE STUDENTS IN A MID-SIZE UNIVERSITY. THE STUDY'S DESIGN INCLUDED STRATIFIED-RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED REPEATED MEASURES WITH THREE GROUPS: A MINDFULNESS INTERVENTION GROUP, A YOGA-ONLY INTERVENTION GROUP, AND A NONINTERVENTIONAL GROUP. PARTICIPANTS WERE RANDOMLY ASSIGNED TO THE AFOREMENTIONED THREE GROUPS. PARTICIPANTS IN THE INTERVENTION GROUPS RECEIVED AN 8-WEEK TRAINING EITHER IN MINDFULNESS OR YOGA. DEPRESSIVE, ANXIETY, STRESS SYMPTOMS, SELF-COMPASSION, AND MINDFULNESS WERE MEASURED AT BASELINE, WEEK 4, WEEK 8, AND WEEK 12. RESULTS: DEPRESSIVE, ANXIETY, AND STRESS SYMPTOMS DECREASED SIGNIFICANTLY (P < .01) FROM BASELINE TO FOLLOW-UP CONDITIONS IN BOTH THE MINDFULNESS AND YOGA INTERVENTION GROUPS. THE CHANGES IN MINDFULNESS SCORES WERE ALSO SIGNIFICANT IN BOTH GROUPS. HOWEVER, THE CHANGES IN SELF-COMPASSION SCORES WERE SIGNIFICANT ONLY IN THE MINDFULNESS INTERVENTION GROUP. NO SIGNIFICANT CHANGES IN THE CONTROL GROUP WERE DEMONSTRATED. CONCLUSIONS: THE FINDINGS FROM THIS STUDY CAN PROVIDE USEFUL INFORMATION TO NURSES AND OTHER HEALTH CARE PROVIDERS. THIS STUDY MAY HAVE IMPLICATIONS FOR A COST-EFFECTIVE TREATMENT FOR DEPRESSION AND ANXIETY. 2016 19 2293 43 THERAPEUTIC EFFICACY OF ADD-ON YOGASANA INTERVENTION IN STABILIZED OUTPATIENT SCHIZOPHRENIA: RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED COMPARISON WITH EXERCISE AND WAITLIST. BACKGROUND: SCHIZOPHRENIA IS A HIGHLY DISABLING ILLNESS. PREVIOUS STUDIES HAVE SHOWN YOGA TO BE A FEASIBLE ADD-ON THERAPY IN SCHIZOPHRENIA. AIMS: THE CURRENT STUDY AIMED TO TEST THE EFFICACY OF YOGA AS AN ADD-ON TREATMENT IN OUTPATIENTS WITH SCHIZOPHRENIA. SETTINGS AND DESIGN: THE STUDY DONE AT A TERTIARY PSYCHIATRY CENTER USED A SINGLE BLIND RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED DESIGN WITH ACTIVE CONTROL AND WAITLIST GROUPS. MATERIALS AND METHODS: CONSENTING PATIENTS WITH SCHIZOPHRENIA WERE RANDOMIZED INTO YOGA, EXERCISE, OR WAITLIST GROUP. THEY CONTINUED TO RECEIVE PHARMACOLOGICAL THERAPY THAT WAS UNCHANGED DURING THE STUDY. PATIENTS IN THE YOGA OR EXERCISE GROUP WERE OFFERED SUPERVISED DAILY PROCEDURES FOR ONE MONTH. ALL PATIENTS WERE ASSESSED BY A BLIND RATER AT THE START OF THE INTERVENTION AND AT THE END OF 4 MONTHS. RESULTS: KENDALL TAU, A NONPARAMETRIC STATISTICAL TEST, SHOWED THAT SIGNIFICANTLY MORE PATIENTS IN THE YOGA GROUP IMPROVED IN POSITIVE AND NEGATIVE SYNDROME SCALE (PANSS) NEGATIVE AND TOTAL PANSS SCORES AS WELL AS SOCIAL FUNCTIONING SCORES COMPARED WITH THE EXERCISE AND WAITLIST GROUP. ODDS RATIO ANALYSIS SHOWED THAT THE LIKELIHOOD OF IMPROVEMENT IN YOGA GROUP IN TERMS OF NEGATIVE SYMPTOMS WAS ABOUT FIVE TIMES GREATER THAN EITHER THE EXERCISE OR WAITLIST GROUPS. CONCLUSION: IN SCHIZOPHRENIA PATIENTS WITH SEVERAL YEARS OF ILLNESS AND ON STABILIZED PHARMACOLOGICAL THERAPY, ONE-MONTH TRAINING FOLLOWED BY THREE MONTHS OF HOME PRACTICES OF YOGA AS AN ADD-ON TREATMENT OFFERED SIGNIFICANT ADVANTAGE OVER EXERCISE OR TREATMENT AS USUAL. YOGA HOLDS PROMISE AS A COMPLEMENTARY INTERVENTION IN THE MANAGEMENT OF SCHIZOPHRENIA. 2012 20 500 33 COMBINING GROUP PSYCHOTHERAPY AND YOGA EXERCISES IMPROVES QUALITY OF LIFE IN MENTAL HEALTH PROFESSIONALS: A CONTROLLED RANDOMIZED CLINICAL TRIAL. PURPOSE: THIS STUDY AIMS TO INVESTIGATE THE EFFECTS OF COMBINING 12-WEEK GROUP PSYCHOTHERAPY WITH YOGA EXERCISES ON STRESS PERCEPTION AND QUALITY OF LIFE IN MENTAL HEALTH PROFESSIONALS. DESIGN/METHODOLOGY/APPROACH: THIS STUDY WAS A PARALLEL-ARM RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED TRIAL, IN WHICH THE PARTICIPANTS WAS UNAWARE OF WHICH GROUP WAS THE EXPERIMENTAL ONE. PARTICIPANTS INVOLVED IN OUR RESEARCH WERE ASSIGNED TO TWO GROUPS OF SEPARATE TREATMENT THAT FOLLOWED FOR THREE MONTHS GROUP PSYCHOTHERAPY COMBINED WITH YOGA PROGRAM FOR STRESS MANAGEMENT OR USUAL STRESS COPING STRATEGIES. FINDINGS: THE FINDINGS DID NOT REVEAL A SIGNIFICANT DIFFERENCE IN STRESS PERCEPTION ASSESSED IN THE TWO GROUPS EITHER BEFORE OR AFTER INTERVENTION BUT REVEAL A SIGNIFICANT DIFFERENCE IN THE QUALITY OF LIFE IN THE TWO GROUPS BEFORE AND AFTER THE PSYCHO BEHAVIORAL INTERVENTIONS. ORIGINALITY/VALUE: THE FINDINGS DID NOT REVEAL A SIGNIFICANT DIFFERENCE IN STRESS PERCEPTION ASSESSED IN THE TWO GROUPS EITHER BEFORE OR AFTER INTERVENTION BUT REVEAL A SIGNIFICANT DIFFERENCE IN THE QUALITY OF LIFE IN THE TWO GROUPS BEFORE AND AFTER THE PSYCHO BEHAVIORAL INTERVENTIONS. 2019