1 702 187 EFFECT OF HOME-BASED TAI CHI, YOGA OR CONVENTIONAL BALANCE EXERCISE ON FUNCTIONAL BALANCE AND MOBILITY AMONG PERSONS WITH IDIOPATHIC PARKINSON'S DISEASE: AN EXPERIMENTAL STUDY. BACKGROUND: INDIVIDUALS WITH PARKINSON'S DISEASE (PD) INVARIABLY EXPERIENCE FUNCTIONAL DECLINE IN A NUMBER OF MOTOR AND NON-MOTOR DOMAINS AFFECTING POSTURE, BALANCE AND GAIT. NUMEROUS CLINICAL STUDIES HAVE EXAMINED EFFECTS OF VARIOUS TYPES OF EXERCISE ON MOTOR AND NON-MOTOR PROBLEMS. BUT STILL MUCH GAP REMAINS IN OUR UNDERSTANDING OF VARIOUS THERAPIES AND THEIR EFFECT ON DELAYING OR SLOWING THE DOPAMINE NEURON DEGENERATION. RECENTLY, TAI CHI AND YOGA BOTH HAVE GAINED POPULARITY AS COMPLEMENTARY THERAPIES, SINCE BOTH HAVE COMPONENTS FOR MIND AND BODY CONTROL. OBJECTIVE: THE AIM OF THIS STUDY WAS TO DETERMINE WHETHER EIGHT WEEKS OF HOME-BASED TAI CHI OR YOGA WAS MORE EFFECTIVE THAN REGULAR BALANCE EXERCISES ON FUNCTIONAL BALANCE AND MOBILITY. METHODS: TWENTY-SEVEN INDIVIDUALS WITH IDIOPATHIC PD (MODIFIED HOEHN AND YAHR STAGES 2.5-3) WERE RANDOMLY ASSIGNED TO EITHER TAI CHI, YOGA OR CONVENTIONAL EXERCISE GROUP. ALL THE PARTICIPANTS WERE EVALUATED FOR FUNCTIONAL BALANCE AND MOBILITY USING BERG BALANCE SCALE, TIMED 10 M WALK TEST AND TIMED UP AND GO TEST BEFORE AND AFTER EIGHT WEEKS OF TRAINING. RESULTS: THE RESULTS WERE ANALYZED USING TWO-WAY MIXED ANOVA WHICH SHOWED THAT THERE WAS A SIGNIFICANT MAIN EFFECT FOR TIME AS F (1, 24) = 74.18, P = 0 . 000 , ETA P 2 = 0 . 76 FOR OVERALL BALANCE IN BERG BALANCE SCALE. THERE WAS ALSO SIGNIFICANT MAIN EFFECT OF TIME ON MOBILITY OVERALL AS F(1, 24) = 77 . 78 , P = 0 . 000 , ETA P 2 = 0 . 76 IN TIMED UP AND GO TEST AND F(1, 24) = 48 . 24 , P = 0 . 000 , ETA P 2 = 0 . 67 FOR 10 M WALK TEST. THERE WAS A SIGNIFICANT INTERACTION EFFECT FOR TIME X GROUP WITH F(2, 24) = 8 . 67 , P = 0 . 001 , ETA P 2 = 0 . 420 FOR BALANCE. WITH RESPECT TO MOBILITY, THE VALUES F(2, 24) = 5 . 92 , P = 0 . 008 , ETA P 2 = 0 . 330 IN TIMED UP AND GO TEST AND F(2, 24) = 10 . 40 , P = 0 . 001 , ETA P 2 = 0 . 464 IN 10 M WALK TEST SHOWED A SIGNIFICANT INTERACTION. BUT THERE WAS NO SIGNIFICANT MAIN EFFECT BETWEEN THE GROUPS FOR BOTH BALANCE AND MOBILITY. CONCLUSION: THE FINDINGS OF THIS STUDY SUGGEST THAT TAI CHI AS WELL AS YOGA ARE WELL ADHERED AND ARE ATTRACTIVE OPTIONS FOR A HOME-BASED SETTING. AS ANY FORM OF PHYSICAL ACTIVITY IS CONSIDERED BENEFICIAL FOR INDIVIDUALS WITH PD EITHER TAI CHI, YOGA OR CONVENTIONAL BALANCE EXERCISES COULD BE USED AS THERAPEUTIC INTERVENTION TO OPTIMIZE BALANCE AND MOBILITY. FURTHER STUDIES ARE NECESSARY TO UNDERSTAND THE MIND-BODY BENEFITS OF TAI CHI AND YOGA EITHER AS MULTICOMPONENT PHYSICAL ACTIVITIES OR AS INDIVIDUAL THERAPIES IN VARIOUS STAGES OF PD. 2020 2 680 54 EFFECT OF A YOGA PROGRAMME ON AN INDIVIDUAL WITH PARKINSON'S DISEASE: A SINGLE-SUBJECT DESIGN. PURPOSE: TO INVESTIGATE THE EFFECT OF EIGHT WEEKLY YOGA SESSIONS ON BALANCE, MOBILITY AND REPORTED QUALITY OF LIFE OF AN INDIVIDUAL WITH PARKINSON'S DISEASE (PD). FURTHERMORE, TO TEST THE METHODOLOGY IN ORDER TO INFORM FUTURE RESEARCH. METHOD: A 69-YEAR-OLD FEMALE WITH AN 8-YEAR HISTORY OF PD (HOEHN AND YAHR RATING TWO) WAS SELECTED FOR THE STUDY, WHICH HAD A SINGLE SUBJECT ABA DESIGN. A 1-WEEK BASELINE WAS FOLLOWED BY AN 8-WEEK PERIOD OF WEEKLY 60 MIN YOGA CLASSES AND A FURTHER 5 WEEKS OF TREATMENT WITHDRAWAL. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES USED WERE BERG BALANCE SCALE (BBS), TIMED UP AND GO (TUG) AND THE PARKINSON'S DISEASE QUESTIONNAIRE-39 (PDQ-39); COLLECTED AT BASELINE, BEFORE, DURING AND AFTER THE INTERVENTION AND AT FOLLOW-UP. RESULTS: AN IMPROVEMENT WAS NOTED IN THE BBS AND TUG DURING THE INTERVENTION PHASE; ALTHOUGH THESE CHANGES DID NOT APPEAR TO BE CLINICALLY SIGNIFICANT. NO CHANGE IN QUALITY OF LIFE AS MEASURED BY THE PDQ-39 WAS NOTED. CONCLUSIONS: THE OBJECTIVE IMPROVEMENTS IN FUNCTIONAL ACTIVITIES DURING THE INTERVENTION PERIOD WERE NOT CLINICALLY SIGNIFICANT. SUBJECTIVELY, THE PARTICIPANT GAINED MUCH ENJOYMENT AND RELAXATION FROM THE YOGA CLASSES. THIS STUDY JUSTIFIES THE NEED FOR FURTHER STUDIES USING A LARGER SAMPLE SIZE. ADDITIONALLY, IT WILL INFORM THE METHODOLOGICAL DESIGN. 2011 3 1580 53 MEASURING THE EFFECT OF AN EIGHT-WEEK ADAPTIVE YOGA PROGRAM ON THE PHYSICAL AND PSYCHOLOGICAL STATUS OF INDIVIDUALS WITH PARKINSON'S DISEASE. A PILOT STUDY. PARKINSON'S DISEASE (PD) IS A NEURODEGENERATIVE DISEASE THAT AFFECTS MUSCLE TONE, STRENGTH, FLEXIBILITY, MOTOR CONTROL, PSYCHOLOGICAL OUTLOOK, COGNITION, AND FUNCTION. EXERCISE HAS BEEN FOUND TO IMPROVE PHYSICAL ABILITY AND PSYCHOLOGICAL OUTLOOK, BUT THE EFFECT OF YOGA ON INDIVIDUALS WITH PD HAS NOT BEEN WELL RESEARCHED. THE PURPOSES OF THIS STUDY WERE TO IDENTIFY OUTCOME MEASURES THAT WERE RESPONSIVE TO CHANGE IN INDIVIDUALS WITH PD AFTER AN 8-WEEK ADAPTIVE YOGA PROGRAM AND TO DETERMINE APPROPRIATE SAMPLE SIZES FOR FUTURE STUDIES. IN A REPEATED MEASURES DESIGN, 10 PARTICIPANTS WITH A HOEHN AND YAHR STAGE OF 2 OR 3 WERE TESTED PRIOR TO AND AFTER AN 8-WEEK CONTROL PHASE AND AGAIN AFTER THEY UNDERWENT AN 8-WEEK ADAPTIVE YOGA PROGRAM. ANALYSIS OF VARIANCE (ANOVA) TESTS REVEALED DIFFERENCES IN TIME OF MEASURE THAT APPROACHED SIGNIFICANCE FOR THE DEPRESSION SUBSCALE OF THE HOSPITAL ANXIETY AND DEPRESSION SCALE (HADS) (P = 0.008) AND THE 30-SECOND CHAIR STAND (TSCS) (P = 0.013). THE INTERACTION BETWEEN TIME OF MEASURE AND GENDER APPROACHED SIGNIFICANCE FOR THE SIT-AND-REACH TEST (SRT) (P = 0.08 AND 0.03, RIGHT AND LEFT RESPECTIVELY), WITH MALE PARTICIPANTS IMPROVING IN SIT-AND-REACH FLEXIBILITY COMPARED WITH FEMALE PARTICIPANTS AFTER INTERVENTION. THE INTERACTION BETWEEN TIME OF MEASURE AND AGE APPROACHED SIGNIFICANCE FOR THE SINGLE-LEG BALANCE TEST (SLB) (P = 0.007), WITH YOUNGER PARTICIPANTS IMPROVING IN SLB TIME AFTER INTERVENTION. POWER CALCULATIONS FOUND THAT A SAMPLE SIZE RANGING FROM 33 TO 153 WOULD BE REQUIRED TO ACHIEVE SIGNIFICANCE AT THE 0.01 LEVEL IN THE VARIOUS OUTCOME MEASURES IN A FUTURE STUDY OF THIS DESIGN. THE DEPRESSION SUBSCALE OF THE HADS, THE TSCS, THE SLB, AND THE RIGHT AND LEFT SRT WERE THE MEASURES THAT CHANGED FOLLOWING THE YOGA INTERVENTION AND ARE RECOMMENDED AS OUTCOME MEASURES IN FUTURE STUDIES INVESTIGATING THE EFFECTIVENESS OF YOGA FOR INDIVIDUALS WITH PD. THIS PRELIMINARY STUDY SUPPORTS FURTHER INVESTIGATION OF ADAPTIVE YOGA USING A RANDOMIZED DESIGN AND A LARGER SAMPLE SIZE OF INDIVIDUALS WITH PD. 2014 4 171 60 A RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED PILOT STUDY OF THE THERAPEUTIC EFFECTS OF YOGA IN PEOPLE WITH PARKINSON'S DISEASE. BACKGROUND: EXERCISE CAN BE BENEFICIAL FOR CARDIOPULMONARY, MUSCULOSKELETAL OR NEUROLOGICAL SYSTEMS, AND OTHER FACTORS INCLUDING MOOD, AND MAY BE BENEFICIAL IN REDUCING FALL RISKS, DEMENTIA AND VARIABLES ASSOCIATED WITH QUALITY OF LIFE (QOL). PARKINSON'S DISEASE (PD) PRODUCES PROGRESSIVE MOTOR AND COGNITIVE DETERIORATION THAT MAY LEAVE THOSE INFLICTED UNABLE TO PARTICIPATE IN STANDARD EXERCISE PROGRAMS. ALTERNATIVE FORMS OF EXERCISE SUCH AS YOGA MAY BE SUCCESSFUL IN IMPROVING PHYSICAL FUNCTION, QOL AND PHYSIOLOGICAL VARIABLES FOR OVERALL WELL-BEING. AIM: THIS RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED PILOT STUDY INVESTIGATED THE EFFECTIVENESS OF YOGA INTERVENTION ON PHYSIOLOGICAL AND HEALTH-RELATED QOL MEASURES IN PEOPLE WITH PD. METHODS AND MATERIALS: THIRTEEN PEOPLE WITH STAGE 1-2 PD WERE RANDOMIZED TO EITHER A YOGA (N = 8) OR A CONTROL GROUP (N = 5). THE YOGA GROUP PARTICIPATED IN TWICE-WEEKLY YOGA SESSIONS FOR 12 WEEKS. PARTICIPANTS WERE TESTED AT BASELINE, AND AT 6 AND 12 WEEKS USING THE UNIFIED PARKINSON'S DISEASE RATING SCALE (UPDRS), CLINICAL MEASURES OF HEALTH-RELATED QOL AND PHYSIOLOGICAL MEASURES. RESULTS: SIGNIFICANT IMPROVEMENT IN UPDRS SCORES (P = .006), DIASTOLIC BLOOD PRESSURE (P = 0.036) AND AVERAGE FORCED VITAL CAPACITY (P = 0.03) WAS NOTED IN THE YOGA GROUP OVER TIME. CHANGES BETWEEN GROUPS WERE ALSO NOTED IN TWO SF-36 SUBSCALES. POSITIVE TRENDS OF IMPROVEMENT WERE NOTED IN DEPRESSION SCORES (P = 0.056), BODY WEIGHT (P = 0.056) AND FORCED EXPIRATORY VOLUME (P = 0.059). YOGA PARTICIPANTS REPORTED MORE POSITIVE SYMPTOM CHANGES INCLUDING IMMEDIATE TREMOR REDUCTION. CONCLUSIONS: THE RESULTS SUGGEST THAT YOGA MAY IMPROVE ASPECTS OF QOL AND PHYSIOLOGICAL FUNCTIONS IN STAGES 1-2 PD. FUTURE LARGER STUDIES ARE NEEDED TO CONFIRM AND EXTEND OUR FINDINGS OF THE EFFECTS OF YOGA IN PD. 2015 5 1072 57 EFFECTS OF YOGA ON OXIDATIVE STRESS, MOTOR FUNCTION, AND NON-MOTOR SYMPTOMS IN PARKINSON'S DISEASE: A PILOT RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED TRIAL. OBJECTIVE: TO EXAMINE THE FEASIBILITY, ACCEPTABILITY, AND PRELIMINARY EFFECTS OF HATHA YOGA ON OXIDATIVE STRESS, MOTOR FUNCTION, AND NON-MOTOR SYMPTOMS AMONG INDIVIDUALS WITH PARKINSON'S DISEASE (PD). METHODS: THE STUDY HAS A PILOT RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED TRIAL DESIGN WITH TWO ARMS: AN IMMEDIATE TREATMENT GROUP AND A WAIT-LIST CONTROL GROUP. THE YOGA-FOR-PD PROGRAM WAS IMPLEMENTED VIA TWICE WEEKLY 60-MIN GROUP-BASED CLASSES FOR 12 WEEKS. PARTICIPANTS WERE ASSESSED AT BASELINE, 12 WEEKS, AND 6 MONTHS POST-INTERVENTION. OUTCOME MEASURES INCLUDED OXIDATIVE STRESS, MOTOR FUNCTION, PHYSICAL ACTIVITY, COGNITIVE FUNCTION, SLEEP QUALITY, AND QUALITY OF LIFE. DATA ON PROGRAM ACCEPTABILITY AND YOGA ADHERENCE WERE COLLECTED DURING THE INTERVENTION AND AT 6 MONTHS POST-INTERVENTION. RESULTS: PARTICIPANTS (N = 20) HAD A MEAN AGE OF 63 YEARS (SD 8, RANGE 49-75) AND DISEASE DURATION 4.8 YEARS (SD 2.9, RANGE 1-13). ALL PARTICIPANTS HAD MILD-MODERATE DISEASE SEVERITY; 18 (90%) WERE ON DOPAMINERGIC MEDICATIONS. SEVENTEEN PARTICIPANTS (85%) ATTENDED AT LEAST 75% OF THE CLASSES AND 4 (20%) ATTENDED ALL CLASSES. MOST PARTICIPANTS (N = 17) REPORTED THEY "DEFINITELY ENJOYED" THE INTERVENTION PROGRAM. NO ADVERSE EVENTS WERE REPORTED. AT 12 WEEKS, THERE WERE NO MAJOR DIFFERENCES IN BLOOD OXIDATIVE STRESS MARKERS BETWEEN THE TWO GROUPS. MOTOR FUNCTION BASED ON THE UNIFIED PARKINSON'S DISEASE RATING SCALE WAS BETTER IN THE TREATMENT GROUP, BUT THEIR SCORES ON SLEEP AND OUTLOOK IN PARKINSON'S DISEASE QUALITY OF LIFE (PDQUALIF) SCALE AND THE PHYSICAL ACTIVITY LEVELS BASED ON THE LONGITUDINAL AGING STUDY AMSTERDAM PHYSICAL ACTIVITY QUESTIONNAIRE WERE WORSE THAN THOSE OF THE CONTROL GROUP. IN WITHIN-GROUP COMPARISONS, MOTOR FUNCTION, COGNITIVE FUNCTION, AND CATALASE IMPROVED BUT THREE PDQUALIF DOMAINS (SOCIAL AND ROLE FUNCTION, SLEEP, AND OUTLOOK) AND PHYSICAL ACTIVITY LEVEL WORSENED BY THE END OF THE YOGA INTERVENTION PROGRAM COMPARED TO BASELINE. THE RESPONSE RATE FOR THE 6-MONTH FOLLOW-UP SURVEY WAS 74% (N = 14) WITH SIX PARTICIPANTS (43%) WHO SIGNED UP FOR A YOGA CLASS AND FOUR (29%) WHO PRACTICED IT INDEPENDENTLY. HEALTH PROBLEMS WERE THE MAIN BARRIER TO YOGA PRACTICE. CONCLUSION: YOGA IS FEASIBLE AND ACCEPTABLE AND MAY SERVE AS A COMPLEMENTARY METHOD FOR IMPROVING MOTOR FUNCTION IN PD. FURTHER RESEARCH USING A LARGER SAMPLE SIZE IS NEEDED TO DETERMINE ITS IMPACT ON OXIDATIVE STRESS AND NON-MOTOR SYMPTOMS. TRIAL REGISTRATION: CLINICALTRIALS.GOV REGISTRATION NUMBER: NCT02509610031. 2018 6 2815 45 YOGA TRAINING HAS POSITIVE EFFECTS ON POSTURAL BALANCE AND ITS INFLUENCE ON ACTIVITIES OF DAILY LIVING IN PEOPLE WITH MULTIPLE SCLEROSIS: A PILOT STUDY. CONTEXT: THERE IS A LITTLE EVIDENCE ABOUT THE INFLUENCE OF YOGA AS A COMPLEMENTARY THERAPY FOR POSTURAL BALANCE AND ITS INFLUENCE ON ACTIVITIES OF DAILY LIVING IN MULTIPLE SCLEROSIS (MS) PATIENTS. OBJECTIVE: TO EVALUATE THE INFLUENCE OF A SIX-MONTH YOGA PROGRAM ON POSTURAL BALANCE AND SUBJECTIVE IMPACT OF POSTURAL BALANCE IMPAIRMENT ON ACTIVITIES OF DAILY LIVING IN PEOPLE WITH MS. DESIGN: RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED PILOT STUDY. SETTING: PROTOCOL DEVELOPED AT THE ADAPTIVE PHYSICAL ACTIVITY STUDY DEPARTMENT, COLLEGE OF PHYSICAL EDUCATION, STATE UNIVERSITY OF CAMPINAS, BRAZIL. SUBJECTS: A TOTAL OF 12 (11 WOMEN) YOGA NAIVE PEOPLE WITH MS RANDOMLY DIVIDED INTO TWO GROUPS AS FOLLOWS: CONTROL (C-WAITING LIST, N = 6) AND YOGA (Y-YOGA TRAINING, N = 6). INTERVENTIONS: YOGA GROUP PRACTICED POSTURES, BREATHING EXERCISES, MEDITATION, AND RELAXATION ON WEEKLY 60-MIN CLASSES FOR A SIX-MONTH PERIOD. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: THE FOLLOWING EVALUATIONS WERE PERFORMED AT STUDY ENTRY (BASELINE), AND AFTER SIX MONTHS (SIX MONTHS): BERG BALANCE SCALE (BBS), EXPANDED DISABILITY STATUS SCALE (EDSS), AND SELF-REPORTED POSTURAL BALANCE QUALITY AND INFLUENCE OF POSTURAL BALANCE ON ACTIVITIES OF DAILY LIVING. RESULTS: THERE WAS A SIGNIFICANT IMPROVEMENT IN BBS SCORE FROM BASELINE TO SIX MONTHS ONLY IN THE YOGA GROUP, ESPECIALLY IN SUBJECTS WITH HIGHER EDSS SCORE, WITH INCREASED QUALITY OF SELF-REPORTED POSTURAL BALANCE, AND DECREASED INFLUENCE OF POSTURAL BALANCE IMPAIRMENT ON ACTIVITIES OF DAILY LIVING. IN CONCLUSION, A SIX-MONTH YOGA TRAINING IS BENEFICIAL FOR PEOPLE WITH MS, SINCE IT IMPROVES POSTURAL BALANCE AND DECREASES THE INFLUENCE OF POSTURAL BALANCE IMPAIRMENT ON ACTIVITIES OF DAILY LIVING. A GREATER SAMPLE SIZE IS NECESSARY TO INCREASE GENERALIZATION, BUT IT SEEMS THAT YOGA COULD BE INCLUDED AS A FEASIBLE COMPLEMENTARY THERAPY FOR PEOPLE WITH MS. 2016 7 1076 46 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 8 2222 57 THE IMPACT OF MODIFIED HATHA YOGA ON CHRONIC LOW BACK PAIN: A PILOT STUDY. PURPOSE: THE PURPOSE OF THIS RANDOMIZED PILOT STUDY WAS TO EVALUATE A POSSIBLE DESIGN FOR A 6-WEEK MODIFIED HATHA YOGA PROTOCOL TO STUDY THE EFFECTS ON PARTICIPANTS WITH CHRONIC LOW BACK PAIN. PARTICIPANTS: TWENTY-TWO PARTICIPANTS (M = 4; F = 17), BETWEEN THE AGES OF 30 AND 65, WITH CHRONIC LOW BACK PAIN (CLBP) WERE RANDOMIZED TO EITHER AN IMMEDIATE YOGA BASED INTERVENTION, OR TO A CONTROL GROUP WITH NO TREATMENT DURING THE OBSERVATION PERIOD BUT RECEIVED LATER YOGA TRAINING. METHODS: A SPECIFIC CLBP YOGA PROTOCOL DESIGNED AND MODIFIED FOR THIS POPULATION BY A CERTIFIED YOGA INSTRUCTOR WAS ADMINISTERED FOR ONE HOUR, TWICE A WEEK FOR 6 WEEKS. PRIMARY FUNCTIONAL OUTCOME MEASURES INCLUDED THE FORWARD REACH (FR) AND SIT AND REACH (SR) TESTS. ALL PARTICIPANTS COMPLETED OSWESTRY DISABILITY INDEX (ODI) AND BECK DEPRESSION INVENTORY (BDI) QUESTIONNAIRES. GUIDING QUESTIONS WERE USED FOR QUALITATIVE DATA ANALYSIS TO ASCERTAIN HOW YOGA PARTICIPANTS PERCEIVED THE INSTRUCTOR, GROUP DYNAMICS, AND THE IMPACT OF YOGA ON THEIR LIFE. ANALYSIS: TO ACCOUNT FOR DROP OUTS, THE DATA WERE DIVIDED INTO BETTER OR NOT CATEGORIES, AND ANALYZED USING CHI-SQUARE TO EXAMINE DIFFERENCES BETWEEN THE GROUPS. QUALITATIVE DATA WERE ANALYZED THROUGH FREQUENCY OF POSITIVE RESPONSES. RESULTS: POTENTIALLY IMPORTANT TRENDS IN THE FUNCTIONAL MEASUREMENT SCORES SHOWED IMPROVED BALANCE AND FLEXIBILITY AND DECREASED DISABILITY AND DEPRESSION FOR THE YOGA GROUP BUT THIS PILOT WAS NOT POWERED TO REACH STATISTICAL SIGNIFICANCE. SIGNIFICANT LIMITATIONS INCLUDED A HIGH DROPOUT RATE IN THE CONTROL GROUP AND LARGE BASELINE DIFFERENCES IN THE SECONDARY MEASURES. IN ADDITION, ANALYSIS OF THE QUALITATIVE DATA REVEALED THE FOLLOWING FREQUENCY OF RESPONSES (1) GROUP INTERVENTION MOTIVATED THE PARTICIPANTS AND (2) YOGA FOSTERED RELAXATION AND NEW AWARENESS/LEARNING. CONCLUSION: A MODIFIED YOGA-BASED INTERVENTION MAY BENEFIT INDIVIDUALS WITH CLB, BUT A LARGER STUDY IS NECESSARY TO PROVIDE DEFINITIVE EVIDENCE. ALSO, THE IMPACT ON DEPRESSION AND DISABILITY COULD BE CONSIDERED AS IMPORTANT OUTCOMES FOR FURTHER STUDY. ADDITIONAL FUNCTIONAL OUTCOME MEASURES SHOULD BE EXPLORED. THIS PILOT STUDY SUPPORTS THE NEED FOR MORE RESEARCH INVESTIGATING THE EFFECT OF YOGA FOR THIS POPULATION. 2004 9 2651 38 YOGA IMPROVES BALANCE, MOBILITY, AND PERCEIVED OCCUPATIONAL PERFORMANCE IN ADULTS WITH CHRONIC BRAIN INJURY: A PRELIMINARY INVESTIGATION. BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: THIS WAS A PRELIMINARY INVESTIGATION TO INVESTIGATE POTENTIAL BENEFITS OF GROUP YOGA, AS PAST WORK HAS INDICATED THAT ONE-ON-ONE YOGA CAN IMPROVE FUNCTIONAL DEFICITS IN ADULTS WITH BRAIN INJURY. MATERIALS AND METHODS: PARTICIPANTS SERVED AS THEIR OWN CONTROLS. NINE PARTICIPANTS WITH CHRONIC BRAIN INJURY WERE RECRUITED, AND SEVEN (FOUR FEMALE) COMPLETED THE STUDY. PERFORMANCE MEASURES OF BALANCE AND MOBILITY AND SELF-REPORTED MEASURES OF BALANCE CONFIDENCE, PAIN, AND OCCUPATIONAL PERFORMANCE AND SATISFACTION WERE USED. DATA WERE COLLECTED 3 TIMES: BASELINE (STUDY ONSET), PRE-YOGA (AFTER AN 8-WEEK NO-CONTACT PERIOD), AND POST-YOGA (AFTER 8 WEEKS OF YOGA). GROUP YOGA WAS LED BY A YOGA INSTRUCTOR/OCCUPATIONAL THERAPIST, AND SESSIONS LASTED 1 H AND OCCURRED TWICE A WEEK. RESULTS: NO PARTICIPANTS WITHDREW DUE TO ADVERSE EFFECTS FROM YOGA. THERE WERE NO SIGNIFICANT CHANGES BETWEEN BASELINE AND PRE-YOGA. SIGNIFICANT IMPROVEMENT WAS OBSERVED POST-YOGA IN BALANCE (P = 0.05), MOBILITY (P = 0.03), AND SELF-REPORTED OCCUPATIONAL PERFORMANCE (P = 0.04). CONCLUSION: WE OBSERVED SIGNIFICANT IMPROVEMENTS IN BALANCE, MOBILITY, AND SELF-REPORTED OCCUPATIONAL PERFORMANCE IN ADULTS WITH CHRONIC BRAIN INJURY. 2020 10 936 37 EFFECTIVENESS OF YOGA VERSUS EXERCISE FOR REDUCING FALLING RISK IN OLDER ADULTS: PHYSICAL AND PSYCHOLOGICAL INDICES. OUR PURPOSE IN THIS STUDY WAS TO EXAMINE THE EFFECTIVENESS OF YOGA TO ADDRESS MULTIPLE RISK FACTORS OF FALLING IN ACTIVE AND LOW ACTIVE OLDER ADULTS. COMMUNITY-DWELLING OLDER ADULTS (N = 35) OVER THE AGE OF 65 ACTIVELY PARTICIPATED IN EITHER A YOGA PROGRAM, AN EXERCISE PROGRAM, OR A NO-PROGRAM CONTROL. PARTICIPANTS COMPLETED MEASURES ASSOCIATED WITH FALLING RISKS. PHYSICAL MEASURES INCLUDED LOWER BODY STRENGTH, STATIC BALANCE, AND LOWER BODY FLEXIBILITY. PSYCHOLOGICAL MEASURES INCLUDED PERCEIVED SELF-EFFICACY WITH RESPECT TO FALLS AND HEALTH-RELATED QUALITY OF LIFE. WE DETERMINED BETWEEN-GROUP DIFFERENCES USING PLANNED COMPARISONS, EFFECT SIZE, CONFIDENCE INTERVALS, AND PROBABILITY OF SUPERIORITY. RESULTS OF PLANNED COMPARISONS AND PRACTICAL SIGNIFICANCE TESTING INDICATED THAT YOGA PARTICIPANTS SCORED HIGHER THAN THE EXERCISE AND CONTROL PARTICIPANTS ON BOTH RIGHT AND LEFT LOWER BODY FLEXIBILITY TESTS. YOGA PARTICIPANTS ALSO SCORED HIGHER THAN THE CONTROL PARTICIPANTS ON RIGHT LEG STATIC BALANCE, AND THE RIGHT AND LEFT LOWER BODY FLEXIBILITY TESTS. THE EXERCISE PARTICIPANTS SCORED HIGHER THAN YOGA PARTICIPANTS ON THE RAND-36 QUALITY OF LIFE SUBSCALES OF ENERGY/FATIGUE, PAIN, AND GENERAL HEALTH. THE PROBABILITY OF SUPERIORITY RESULTS INDICATED THAT THE NO-PROGRAM OLDER ADULT PARTICIPANTS WOULD BENEFIT BY ENROLLING IN THE YOGA RATHER THAN THE EXERCISE PROGRAM TO REDUCE PHYSICAL RISKS OF FALLING. THESE FINDINGS WERE DISCUSSED IN RELATION TO PROMOTING PHYSICAL ACTIVITY PROGRAMS TO REDUCE RISKS OF FALLING, AND THE ROLES OF THE PROTOCOL, PRACTICAL SIGNIFICANCE, AND MEASURES EMPLOYED WHEN DETERMINING PROGRAM EFFECTIVENESS. 2022 11 60 40 A COMPARISON OF THE EFFECTS OF HATHA YOGA AND RESISTANCE EXERCISE ON MENTAL HEALTH AND WELL-BEING IN SEDENTARY ADULTS: A PILOT STUDY. OBJECTIVES: PHYSICAL ACTIVITY HAS A POSITIVE EFFECT ON PEOPLE'S MENTAL HEALTH AND WELL-BEING. THE AIM OF THIS STUDY WAS TO COMPARE THE EFFECTS OF HATHA YOGA AND RESISTANCE EXERCISES ON MENTAL HEALTH AND WELL-BEING IN SEDENTARY ADULTS. DESIGN: RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED STUDY. METHODS: FIFTY-ONE PARTICIPANTS AGED MEAN (SD) 25.6 (5.7) YEARS WERE RANDOMLY DIVIDED INTO THREE GROUPS: HATHA YOGA GROUP, RESISTANCE EXERCISE GROUP AND CONTROL GROUP. THE HATHA YOGA GROUP AND RESISTANCE EXERCISE GROUP PARTICIPATED IN SESSIONS THREE DAYS PER WEEK FOR 7 WEEKS AND THE CONTROL GROUP DID NOT PARTICIPATE IN ANY SESSIONS. ALL THE SUBJECTS WERE EVALUATED THROUGH THE ROSENBERG SELF-ESTEEM SCALE, BECK DEPRESSION INVENTORY, BODY CATHEXIS SCALE, NOTTINGHAM HEALTH PROFILE AND VISUAL ANALOG SCALE FOR FATIGUE PRE-AND POST-SESSION. RESULTS: SIGNIFICANT IMPROVEMENTS WERE FOUND IN TERMS OF ALL OUTCOME MEASURES IN THE HATHA YOGA GROUP AND THE RESISTANCE EXERCISE GROUP. NO IMPROVEMENTS WERE FOUND IN THE CONTROL GROUP. HATHA YOGA MORE IMPROVED THE DIMENSIONS FATIGUE, SELF-ESTEEM, AND QUALITY OF LIFE, WHILST RESISTANCE EXERCISE TRAINING MORE IMPROVED BODY IMAGE. HATHA YOGA AND RESISTANCE EXERCISE DECREASED DEPRESSION SYMPTOMS AT A SIMILAR LEVEL. CONCLUSION: THE RESULTS INDICATED THAT HATHA YOGA AND RESISTANCE EXERCISE HAD POSITIVE EFFECTS ON MENTAL HEALTH AND WELL-BEING IN SEDENTARY ADULTS. HATHA YOGA AND RESISTANCE EXERCISE MAY AFFECT DIFFERENT ASPECTS OF MENTAL HEALTH AND WELL-BEING. 2014 12 965 50 EFFECTS OF A YOGA PROGRAM ON POSTURAL CONTROL, MOBILITY, AND GAIT SPEED IN COMMUNITY-LIVING OLDER ADULTS: A PILOT STUDY. OBJECTIVES: TO EXAMINE THE IMPACT OF AN 8-WEEK THERAPEUTIC YOGA PROGRAM ON POSTURAL CONTROL, MOBILITY, RISING FROM THE FLOOR, AND GAIT SPEED IN COMMUNITY-LIVING OLDER ADULTS. DESIGN: PRETEST/POSTTEST DESIGN WITH AN EXPERIMENTAL GROUP AND AN AGE-MATCHED CONTROL GROUP. CHANGES OVER TIME (PRETEST TO POSTTEST) WERE EVALUATED IN ALL OUTCOME MEASURES USING PAIRED T TESTS. SETTING: THE YOGA CLASS WAS PERFORMED AT A LOCAL CONTINUING CARE RETIREMENT COMMUNITY. ALL TESTING WAS PERFORMED AT THE SITE. CONTROL-SUBJECT PRETESTS AND POSTTESTS WERE PERFORMED AT A SECOND CONTINUING CARE RETIREMENT COMMUNITY. PARTICIPANTS: EIGHT RESEARCH PARTICIPANTS, ALL WOMEN, WITH A MEAN AGE OF 84 (4.6) YEARS, 8 CONTROL PARTICIPANTS, 5 WOMEN AND 3 MEN, AGED 81.3 (4.9) YEARS. RESEARCH PARTICIPANTS WERE NAIVE TO YOGA. INTERVENTIONS: AN 8-WEEK, 80-MINUTE, BIWEEKLY KRIPALU YOGA CLASS DESIGNED SPECIFICALLY FOR COMMUNITY-DWELLING OLDER ADULTS. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: POSTURAL CONTROL (BERG BALANCE SCALE), MOBILITY (TIME TO RISE FROM THE FLOOR TO STANDING, TIMED UP AND GO), GAIT (USUAL AND FAST GAIT SPEED), AND BALANCE CONFIDENCE (ACTIVITIES-SPECIFIC BALANCE SCALE). RESULTS: ALL SUBJECTS ATTENDED AT LEAST 10 OF THE 16 CLASSES (62% ATTENDANCE). POSTTEST DIFFERENCES WERE FOUND FOR YOGA PARTICIPANTS IN BALANCE SCORES (P < .003) AND FAST WALKING SPEED (P < .031). NO OTHER SIGNIFICANT CHANGES WERE NOTED. CONCLUSIONS: IMPROVEMENTS IN POSTURAL CONTROL AS MEASURED BY THE BERG BALANCE SCALE AND GAIT AS MEASURED BY FAST GAIT SPEED INDICATE THAT RESEARCH SUBJECTS BENEFITED FROM THE YOGA INTERVENTION. THE YOGA PROGRAM DESIGNED FOR THIS STUDY INCLUDED THE ACTIVITIES OF STANDING, SITTING, AND LYING ON THE FLOOR. THEREFORE, SUBJECTS PERFORM ACTIVITIES DURING YOGA THAT CAN IMPROVE POSTURAL CONTROL, MOBILITY, AND GAIT SPEED. 2011 13 537 50 COMPARISONS OF TAI CHI AND IYENGAR YOGA INTERVENTION EFFECTS ON MUSCLE STRENGTH, BALANCE, AND CONFIDENCE IN BALANCE. BACKGROUND: THE AIM OF THE STUDY IS TO COMPARE A 16-WEEK TAI CHI AND IYENGAR YOGA PROGRAM EFFECTS ON MUSCLE STRENGTH, STATIC AND DYNAMIC BALANCE, AND BALANCE CONFIDENCE IN ELDERLY PEOPLE. METHODS: A TOTAL OF 48 PARTICIPANTS (>/=60 YEARS OLD) WITHOUT MOBILITY-IMPAIRING NEUROLOGICAL DISEASE, DEMENTIA, CARDIOVASCULAR DISEASE/SYMPTOMS DURING MODERATE EXERCISE, POORLY CONTROLLED HYPERTENSION, OR BALANCE-IMPAIRING DRUG USE. PARTICIPANTS WERE DIVIDED INTO A TAI CHI GROUP, AN IYENGAR YOGA GROUP, AND A CONTROL GROUP (EIGHT MALES AND EIGHT FEMALES PER GROUP), USING A RESTRICTED RANDOMIZATION SCHEME GENERATED BY SOFTWARE. WHILE THE FORMER TWO UNDERTOOK 16-WEEK EXERCISE PROGRAMS, THE CONTROL GROUP RECEIVED GENERAL EDUCATION. MAXIMUM CONCENTRIC STRENGTH WAS MEASURED WITH AN ISOKINETIC DYNAMOMETER. THE ONE-LEGGED STAND WITH EYES CLOSED, "8 FEET UP AND GO," AND ACTIVITIES-SPECIFIC BALANCE CONFIDENCE (ABC) SCALE WERE USED TO ASSESS STATIC BALANCE, DYNAMIC BALANCE, AND BALANCE CONFIDENCE IN DAILY ACTIVITIES, RESPECTIVELY. RESULTS: BOTH PROGRAMS IMPROVED ALL MEASURES SIGNIFICANTLY WITH TAI CHI BEING MORE EFFECTIVE FOR INCREASING KNEE FL EXOR STRENGTH (P=0.045) AND EXTENSOR STRENGTH (P=0.032) AND ABC SCORE (P=0.034); IYENGAR YOGA WAS MORE EFFECTIVE FOR IMPROVING STATIC BALANCE (P=0.014) AND DYNAMIC BALANCE (P=0.025; ALL P VALUES HERE VS. THE OTHER PROGRAM). CONCLUSIONS: TAI CHI AND IYENGAR YOGA CAN IMPROVE STRENGTH, BALANCE, AND BALANCE CONFIDENCE AMONG OLDER PEOPLE. BOTH ARE SUITABLE EXERCISE CHOICES FOR OLDER ADULTS. 2021 14 2243 49 THE INFLUENCE OF TAI CHI AND YOGA ON BALANCE AND FALLS IN A RESIDENTIAL CARE SETTING: A RANDOMISED CONTROLLED TRIAL. ABSTRACT FALLS AMONGST OLDER PEOPLE IS A GLOBAL PUBLIC HEALTH CONCERN. WHILST FALLING IS NOT A TYPICAL FEATURE OF AGEING, OLDER PEOPLE ARE MORE LIKELY TO FALL. FALL INJURIES AMONGST OLDER PEOPLE ARE A LEADING CAUSE OF DEATH AND DISABILITY. MANY OLDER PEOPLE DO NOT DO REGULAR EXERCISE SO THAT THEY LOSE MUSCLE TONE, STRENGTH, AND FLEXIBILITY WHICH AFFECT BALANCE AND PREDISPOSE THEM TO FALLS. THE MANAGEMENT OF FALLS IN RESIDENTIAL CARE SETTINGS IS A MAJOR CONCERN WITH STRATEGIES FOR PREVENTION AND MONITORING A FOCUS IN THIS SETTING. YOGA AND TAI CHI HAVE SHOWN POTENTIAL TO IMPROVE BALANCE AND PREVENT FALLS IN OLDER ADULTS. THEY ALSO HAVE POTENTIAL TO IMPROVE PAIN AND QUALITY OF LIFE. THE AIM OF THIS STUDY WAS TO DETERMINE THE FEASIBILITY OF CONDUCTING A 3-ARM RCT WITH FRAIL OLDER PEOPLE IN A RESIDENTIAL CARE SETTING TO TEST THE HYPOTHESIS THAT A 14 WEEK MODIFIED TAI CHI OR YOGA PROGRAM IS MORE EFFECTIVE THAN USUAL CARE ACTIVITY IN IMPROVING BALANCE FUNCTION, QUALITY OF LIFE, PAIN EXPERIENCE AND IN REDUCING NUMBER OF FALLS. THERE WERE NO STATISTICALLY SIGNIFICANT DIFFERENCES BETWEEN THE THREE GROUPS IN THE OCCURRENCE OF FALLS. YOGA DEMONSTRATED A SLIGHT DECREASE IN FALL INCIDENCE; QUALITY OF LIFE IMPROVED FOR THE TAI CHI GROUP. ONLY THE YOGA GROUP EXPERIENCED A REDUCTION IN AVERAGE PAIN SCORES THOUGH NOT STATISTICALLY SIGNIFICANT. THE FINDINGS OF THE STUDY SUGGEST IT IS POSSIBLE TO SAFELY IMPLEMENT MODIFIED YOGA AND TAI CHI IN A RESIDENTIAL CARE SETTING AND EVALUATE THIS USING RCT DESIGN. THEY SHOW POSITIVE CHANGES TO BALANCE, PAIN AND QUALITY OF LIFE AND A HIGH LEVEL OF INTEREST THROUGH ATTENDANCE AMONGST THE OLDER PARTICIPANTS. THE RESULTS SUPPORT OFFERING TAI CHI AND YOGA TO OLDER PEOPLE WHO ARE FRAIL AND DEPENDENT WITH PHYSICAL AND COGNITIVE LIMITATIONS. 2014 15 1869 47 RANDOMIZED, CONTROLLED, SIX-MONTH TRIAL OF YOGA IN HEALTHY SENIORS: EFFECTS ON COGNITION AND QUALITY OF LIFE. CONTEXT: THERE ARE POTENTIAL BENEFITS OF MIND-BODY TECHNIQUES ON COGNITIVE FUNCTION BECAUSE THE TECHNIQUES INVOLVE AN ACTIVE ATTENTIONAL OR MINDFULNESS COMPONENT, BUT THIS HAS NOT BEEN FULLY EXPLORED. OBJECTIVE: TO DETERMINE THE EFFECT OF YOGA ON COGNITIVE FUNCTION, FATIGUE, MOOD, AND QUALITY OF LIFE IN SENIORS. DESIGN: RANDOMIZED, CONTROLLED TRIAL COMPARING YOGA, EXERCISE, AND WAIT-LIST CONTROL GROUPS. PARTICIPANTS: ONE HUNDRED THIRTY-FIVE GENERALLY HEALTHY MEN AND WOMEN AGED 65-85 YEARS. INTERVENTION: PARTICIPANTS WERE RANDOMIZED TO 6 MONTHS OF HATHA YOGA CLASS, WALKING EXERCISE CLASS, OR WAIT-LIST CONTROL. SUBJECTS ASSIGNED TO CLASSES ALSO WERE ASKED TO PRACTICE AT HOME. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: OUTCOME ASSESSMENTS PERFORMED AT BASELINE AND AFTER THE 6-MONTH PERIOD INCLUDED A BATTERY OF COGNITIVE MEASURES FOCUSED ON ATTENTION AND ALERTNESS, THE PRIMARY OUTCOME MEASURES BEING PERFORMANCE ON THE STROOP TEST AND A QUANTITATIVE ELECTROENCEPHALOGRAM (EEG) MEASURE OF ALERTNESS; SF-36 HEALTH-RELATED QUALITY OF LIFE; PROFILE OF MOOD STATES; MULTI-DIMENSIONAL FATIGUE INVENTORY; AND PHYSICAL MEASURES RELATED TO THE INTERVENTIONS. RESULTS: ONE HUNDRED THIRTY-FIVE SUBJECTS WERE RECRUITED AND RANDOMIZED. SEVENTEEN SUBJECTS DID NOT FINISH THE 6-MONTH INTERVENTION. THERE WERE NO EFFECTS FROM EITHER OF THE ACTIVE INTERVENTIONS ON ANY OF THE COGNITIVE AND ALERTNESS OUTCOME MEASURES. THE YOGA INTERVENTION PRODUCED IMPROVEMENTS IN PHYSICAL MEASURES (EG, TIMED 1-LEGGED STANDING, FORWARD FLEXIBILITY) AS WELL AS A NUMBER OF QUALITY-OF-LIFE MEASURES RELATED TO SENSE OF WELL-BEING AND ENERGY AND FATIGUE COMPARED TO CONTROLS. CONCLUSIONS: THERE WERE NO RELATIVE IMPROVEMENTS OF COGNITIVE FUNCTION AMONG HEALTHY SENIORS IN THE YOGA OR EXERCISE GROUP COMPARED TO THE WAIT-LIST CONTROL GROUP. THOSE IN THE YOGA GROUP SHOWED SIGNIFICANT IMPROVEMENT IN QUALITY-OF-LIFE AND PHYSICAL MEASURES COMPARED TO EXERCISE AND WAIT-LIST CONTROL GROUPS. 2006 16 2194 53 THE EFFECTS OF YOGA VERSUS STRETCHING AND RESISTANCE TRAINING EXERCISES ON PSYCHOLOGICAL DISTRESS FOR PEOPLE WITH MILD-TO-MODERATE PARKINSON'S DISEASE: STUDY PRXOTOCOL FOR A RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED TRIAL. BACKGROUND: PSYCHOLOGICAL DISTRESS IS PREVALENT AMONG PEOPLE WITH PARKINSON'S DISEASE (PD) AND AGGRAVATES THEIR MOTOR SYMPTOMS, THEREBY LEADING TO INCREASED DISABILITY, HIGH HEALTHCARE COSTS, AND POOR HEALTH-RELATED QUALITY OF LIFE (HRQOL). THE UNDER-RECOGNITION AND ADVERSE EFFECTS OF THE PHARMACOLOGICAL MANAGEMENT OF ANXIETY AND DEPRESSION AMONG THE PD POPULATION ARE CONSIDERABLE. THUS, ADOPTING A COMPLEMENTARY AND ALTERNATIVE MANAGEMENT (CAM) APPROACH TO ADDRESS THIS PROBLEM IS IMPORTANT. YOGA, ONE OF THE MOST COMMON "MIND-BODY" CAM THERAPIES, CAN IMPROVE THE PSYCHOLOGICAL WELLBEING OF PEOPLE WITH CHRONIC ILLNESSES. HOWEVER, LIMITED RESEARCH ON THE EFFECTS OF YOGA IN PEOPLE WITH PD HAS BEEN CONDUCTED. THIS STUDY WILL DETERMINE THE EFFECTS OF YOGA ON THE PSYCHOLOGICAL WELLBEING OF PEOPLE WITH MILD-TO-MODERATE PD AND WILL COMPARE THESE EFFECTS WITH THOSE OF STRETCHING AND RESISTANCE TRAINING EXERCISES. METHODS: A COMMUNITY-BASED, SINGLE-BLIND, RANDOMIZED TRIAL WILL BE CONDUCTED. A TOTAL OF 126 SUBJECTS WILL BE RECRUITED AND RANDOMLY DIVIDED INTO YOGA (N = 63) OR STRETCHING AND RESISTANCE EXERCISE (N = 63) GROUPS. FOR 8 WEEKS, THE YOGA GROUP WILL RECEIVE A WEEKLY 90-MIN SESSION OF YOGA, AND THE CONTROL GROUP WILL RECEIVE A WEEKLY 60-MIN SESSION OF STRETCHING AND RESISTANCE EXERCISES. THE PRIMARY OUTCOME WILL BE THE LEVEL OF PSYCHOLOGICAL DISTRESS MEASURED USING THE HOSPITAL ANXIETY AND DEPRESSION SCALE. THE SECONDARY OUTCOMES WILL INCLUDE THE SEVERITY OF MOTOR SYMPTOMS MEASURED BY THE MOVEMENT DISORDERS SOCIETY - UNIFIED PARKINSON'S DISEASE SCALE - PART III MOTOR EXAMINATION; MOBILITY, BALANCE, AND FALL RISK MEASURED BY THE TIMED UP AND GO TEST; SPIRITUAL WELLBEING MEASURED BY THE HOLISTIC WELLBEING SCALE; AND HRQOL MEASURED BY THE PARKINSON'S DISEASE QUESTIONNAIRE-8. ASSESSMENT WILL BE CONDUCTED AT BASELINE, 8TH, AND 20TH WEEKS OF FOLLOW-UPS. DISCUSSION: THIS STUDY WILL BE THE FIRST RANDOMIZED TRIAL TO COMPARE THE EFFECT OF YOGA VERSUS STRETCHING AND RESISTANCE TRAINING EXERCISES IN A PD POPULATION. RESULTS WILL CONTRIBUTE TO THE VALUE OF YOGA AS A THERAPEUTIC OPTION FOR MANAGING PSYCHOLOGICAL DISTRESS IN PD PATIENTS. MULTIPLE OUTCOMES INCLUDING PSYCHOLOGICAL, PHYSIOLOGICAL, AND SPIRITUAL AND HRQOL WILL ALSO BE MEASURED TO ELUCIDATE THE POTENTIAL MECHANISMS OF YOGA. THE EFFECT OF YOGA ON PEOPLE WITH CHRONIC ILLNESSES WILL FURTHER BE ELUCIDATED. THIS INFORMATION SHOULD CONTRIBUTE TO FUTURE RESEARCH, PRACTICE, AND POLICY RELATED TO PD MANAGEMENT. TRIAL REGISTRATION: WHO PRIMARY REGISTRY - CHINESE CLINICAL TRIALS REGISTRY (CHICTR): CUHK_CCRB00522 REGISTERED ON 8 OCTOBER 2016; DATE OF APPROVAL 19 AUGUST 2016. 2017 17 909 43 EFFECTIVENESS OF GROUP VERSUS INDIVIDUAL YOGA EXERCISES ON FATIGUE OF PATIENTS WITH MULTIPLE SCLEROSIS. BACKGROUND: MULTIPLE SCLEROSIS DISORDERS POSES HEAVY PHYSICAL AND EMOTIONAL EFFECT ON PATIENTS WHO ARE ASSOCIATED WITH THE DISEASE. AIM: THIS STUDY AIMED TO COMPARE THE EFFECTIVENESS OF INDIVIDUAL VERSUS GROUP EXERCISES ON FATIGUE ON PATIENTS WITH MULTIPLE SCLEROSIS. MATERIALS AND METHODS: IN THIS CLINICAL TRIAL, 85 PATIENTS WITH MULTIPLE SCLEROSIS WERE DIVIDED IN TWO GROUPS OF INDIVIDUALIZED EXERCISE AND TEAM EXERCISE. THE INTERVENTION WAS CONDUCTED FOR 6 WEEKS AND COMPRISED OF MILD STRETCHING AND BASIC YOGA EXERCISES TWICE A DAY. THE DATA WERE COLLECTED THROUGH DEMOGRAPHIC QUESTIONNAIRE, STANDARD FATIGUE SCALE AND SELF-REPORTED CHECKLIST. DATA ANALYSIS WAS PERFORMED BY SPSS SOFTWARE. RESULTS: THE MEAN LEVELS OF FATIGUE PERCEPTION AFTER THE INTERVENTION IN GROUP EXERCISE WAS 27.9 +/- 15.9 AND 27.1 +/- 17.2 IN INDIVIDUAL EXERCISE. THERE WAS NO SIGNIFICANT DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THE TWO GROUPS (P > 0.05). STATISTICALLY SIGNIFICANT DIFFERENCE WAS OBSERVED IN THE MEAN LEVEL OF PERCEIVED FATIGUE IN TRIPLICATE MEASUREMENTS (P = 0.013) AMONG PATIENTS WHO COMPLETED INDIVIDUAL EXERCISE. HOWEVER, THIS DIFFERENCE WAS NOT SIGNIFICANT IN THE GROUP EXERCISE. CONCLUSION: PERFORMING MILD STRETCHING EXERCISES AND BASIC YOGA ARE RECOMMENDED AS A COST-EFFECTIVE METHOD WHICH IS EASY TO PERFORM AMONG PATIENTS WITH MILD TO MODERATE DISABILITIES. 2015 18 1707 40 PATTERNS OF YOGA PRACTICE AND PHYSICAL ACTIVITY FOLLOWING A YOGA INTERVENTION FOR ADULTS WITH OR AT RISK FOR TYPE 2 DIABETES. BACKGROUND: THE CURRENT STUDY DESCRIBED PATTERNS OF YOGA PRACTICE AND EXAMINED DIFFERENCES IN PHYSICAL ACTIVITY OVER TIME BETWEEN INDIVIDUALS WITH OR AT RISK FOR TYPE 2 DIABETES WHO COMPLETED AN 8-WEEK YOGA INTERVENTION COMPARED WITH CONTROLS. METHODS: A LONGITUDINAL COMPARATIVE DESIGN MEASURED THE EFFECT OF A YOGA INTERVENTION ON YOGA PRACTICE AND PHYSICAL ACTIVITY, USING DATA AT BASELINE AND POSTINTERVENTION MONTHS 3, 6, AND 15. RESULTS: DISPARATE PATTERNS OF YOGA PRACTICE OCCURRED BETWEEN INTERVENTION AND CONTROL PARTICIPANTS OVER TIME, BUT THE SUBJECTIVE DEFINITION OF YOGA PRACTICE LIMITS INTERPRETATION. MULTILEVEL MODEL ESTIMATES INDICATED THAT TREATMENT GROUP DID NOT HAVE A SIGNIFICANT INFLUENCE IN THE RATE OF CHANGE IN PHYSICAL ACTIVITY OVER THE STUDY PERIOD. WHILE AGE AND EDUCATION WERE NOT SIGNIFICANT INDIVIDUAL PREDICTORS, THE INCLUSION OF THESE VARIABLES IN THE MODEL DID IMPROVE FIT. CONCLUSIONS: FINDINGS INDICATE THAT AN 8-WEEK YOGA INTERVENTION HAD LITTLE EFFECT ON PHYSICAL ACTIVITY OVER TIME. FURTHER RESEARCH IS NECESSARY TO EXPLORE THE INFLUENCE OF YOGA ON BEHAVIORAL HEALTH OUTCOMES AMONG INDIVIDUALS WITH OR AT RISK FOR TYPE 2 DIABETES. 2012 19 428 44 CAN YOGA HAVE ANY EFFECT ON SHOULDER AND ARM PAIN AND QUALITY OF LIFE IN PATIENTS WITH BREAST CANCER? A RANDOMIZED, CONTROLLED, SINGLE-BLIND TRIAL. OBJECTIVE: TO EXAMINE THE EFFECTS OF YOGA ON SHOULDER AND ARM PAIN, QUALITY OF LIFE (QOL), DEPRESSION, AND PHYSICAL PERFORMANCE IN PATIENTS WITH BREAST CANCER. METHODS: THIS PROSPECTIVE, RANDOMIZED STUDY INCLUDED 42 PATIENTS. THE PATIENTS IN GROUP 1 UNDERWENT A 10-WEEK HATHA YOGA EXERCISE PROGRAM. THE PATIENTS IN GROUP 2 WERE INCLUDED IN A 10-WEEK FOLLOW-UP PROGRAM. OUR PRIMARY ENDPOINT WAS ARM AND SHOULDER PAIN INTENSITY. RESULTS: THE GROUP RECEIVING YOGA SHOWED A SIGNIFICANT IMPROVEMENT IN THEIR PAIN SEVERITY FROM BASELINE TO POST-TREATMENT, AND THESE BENEFITS WERE MAINTAINED AT 2.5 MONTHS POST-TREATMENT. WHEN COMPARED TO THE CONTROL GROUP, THERE WERE NO STATISTICALLY SIGNIFICANT DIFFERENCES BETWEEN THE 2 GROUPS WITH RESPECT TO THE PARAMETERS ASSESSED AT THE END OF WEEK 10. CONCLUSION: YOGA WAS AN EFFECTIVE AND SAFE EXERCISE FOR ALLEVIATING SHOULDER AND ARM PAIN, WHICH IS A COMPLICATION WITH A HIGH PREVALENCE IN PATIENTS WITH BREAST CANCER. 2018 20 159 37 A RANDOMISED COMPARATIVE TRIAL OF YOGA AND RELAXATION TO REDUCE STRESS AND ANXIETY. OBJECTIVE: TO COMPARE YOGA AND RELAXATION AS TREATMENT MODALITIES AT 10 AND 16 WEEKS FROM STUDY BASELINE TO DETERMINE IF EITHER OF MODALITY REDUCES SUBJECT STRESS, ANXIETY, BLOOD PRESSURE AND IMPROVE QUALITY OF LIFE. DESIGN: A RANDOMISED COMPARATIVE TRIAL WAS UNDERTAKEN COMPARING YOGA WITH RELAXATION. PARTICIPANTS: ONE HUNDRED AND THIRTY-ONE SUBJECTS WITH MILD TO MODERATE LEVELS OF STRESS WERE RECRUITED FROM THE COMMUNITY IN SOUTH AUSTRALIA. INTERVENTIONS: TEN WEEKLY 1- H SESSIONS OF RELAXATION OR HATHA YOGA. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: CHANGES IN THE STATE TRAIT PERSONALITY INVENTORY SUB-SCALE ANXIETY, GENERAL HEALTH QUESTIONNAIRE AND THE SHORT FORM-36. RESULTS: FOLLOWING THE 10 WEEK INTERVENTION STRESS, ANXIETY AND QUALITY OF LIFE SCORES IMPROVED OVER TIME. YOGA WAS FOUND TO BE AS EFFECTIVE AS RELAXATION IN REDUCING STRESS, ANXIETY AND IMPROVING HEALTH STATUS ON SEVEN DOMAINS OF THE SF-36. YOGA WAS MORE EFFECTIVE THAN RELAXATION IN IMPROVING MENTAL HEALTH. AT THE END OF THE 6 WEEK FOLLOW-UP PERIOD THERE WERE NO DIFFERENCES BETWEEN GROUPS IN LEVELS OF STRESS, ANXIETY AND ON FIVE DOMAINS OF THE SF-36. VITALITY, SOCIAL FUNCTION AND MENTAL HEALTH SCORES ON THE SF-36 WERE HIGHER IN THE RELAXATION GROUP DURING THE FOLLOW-UP PERIOD. CONCLUSION: YOGA APPEARS TO PROVIDE A COMPARABLE IMPROVEMENT IN STRESS, ANXIETY AND HEALTH STATUS COMPARED TO RELAXATION. 2007