1 1452 123 INFLUENCE OF LONG-TERM SAHAJA YOGA MEDITATION PRACTICE ON EMOTIONAL PROCESSING IN THE BRAIN: AN ERP STUDY. DESPITE GROWING INTEREST IN MEDITATION AS A TOOL FOR ALTERNATIVE THERAPY OF STRESS-RELATED AND PSYCHOSOMATIC DISEASES, BRAIN MECHANISMS OF BENEFICIAL INFLUENCES OF MEDITATION PRACTICE ON HEALTH AND QUALITY OF LIFE ARE STILL UNCLEAR. WE PROPOSE THAT THE KEY POINT IS A PERSISTENT CHANGE IN EMOTIONAL FUNCTIONING, SPECIFICALLY THE MODULATION OF THE EARLY APPRAISAL OF MOTIVATIONAL SIGNIFICANCE OF EVENTS. THE MAIN AIM WAS TO STUDY THE EFFECTS OF LONG-TERM MEDITATION PRACTICE ON EVENT-RELATED BRAIN POTENTIALS (ERPS) DURING AFFECTIVE PICTURE VIEWING. ERPS WERE RECORDED IN 20 LONG-TERM SAHAJA YOGA MEDITATORS AND 20 CONTROL SUBJECTS WITHOUT PRIOR EXPERIENCE IN MEDITATION. THE MEDITATORS' MID-LATENCY (140-400MS) ERPS WERE ATTENUATED FOR BOTH POSITIVE AND NEGATIVE PICTURES (I.E. THERE WERE NO AROUSAL-RELATED INCREASES IN ERP POSITIVITY) AND THIS EFFECT WAS MORE PROMINENT OVER THE RIGHT HEMISPHERE. HOWEVER, WE FOUND NO DIFFERENCES IN THE LONG LATENCY (400-800MS) RESPONSES TO EMOTIONAL IMAGES, ASSOCIATED WITH MEDITATION PRACTICE. IN ADDITION WE FOUND STRONGER ERP NEGATIVITY IN THE TIME WINDOW 200-300MS FOR MEDITATORS COMPARED TO THE CONTROLS, REGARDLESS OF PICTURE VALENCE. WE ASSUME THAT LONG-TERM MEDITATION PRACTICE ENHANCES FRONTAL TOP-DOWN CONTROL OVER FAST AUTOMATIC SALIENCE DETECTION, BASED ON AMYGDALA FUNCTIONS.	2014	
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                        
2 1756  30 PLASTICITY OF VISUAL ATTENTION IN ISHA YOGA MEDITATION PRACTITIONERS BEFORE AND AFTER A 3-MONTH RETREAT. MEDITATION HAS LATELY RECEIVED CONSIDERABLE INTEREST FROM COGNITIVE NEUROSCIENCE. STUDIES SUGGEST THAT DAILY MEDITATION LEADS TO LONG LASTING ATTENTIONAL AND NEURONAL PLASTICITY. WE PRESENT CHANGES RELATED TO THE ATTENTIONAL SYSTEMS BEFORE AND AFTER A 3 MONTH INTENSIVE MEDITATION RETREAT. WE USED THREE BEHAVIORAL PSYCHOPHYSICAL TESTS - A STROOP TASK, AN ATTENTIONAL BLINK TASK, AND A GLOBAL-LOCAL LETTER TASK-TO ASSESS THE EFFECT OF ISHA YOGA MEDITATION ON ATTENTIONAL RESOURCE ALLOCATION. 82 ISHA YOGA PRACTITIONERS WERE TESTED AT THE BEGINNING AND AT THE END OF THE RETREAT. OUR RESULTS SHOWED AN INCREASE IN CORRECT RESPONSES SPECIFIC TO INCONGRUENT STIMULI IN THE STROOP TASK. CONGRUENTLY, A POSITIVE CORRELATION BETWEEN PREVIOUS MEDITATION EXPERIENCE AND ACCURACY TO INCONGRUENT STROOP STIMULI WAS ALSO OBSERVED AT BASELINE. WE ALSO OBSERVED A REDUCTION OF THE ATTENTIONAL BLINK. UNEXPECTEDLY, A NEGATIVE CORRELATION BETWEEN PREVIOUS MEDITATION EXPERIENCE AND ATTENTIONAL BLINK PERFORMANCE AT BASELINE WAS OBSERVED. REGARDING SPATIAL ATTENTION ORIENTATION AS ASSESSED USING THE GLOBAL-LOCAL LETTER TASK, PARTICIPANTS SHOWED A BIAS TOWARD LOCAL PROCESSING. ONLY SLIGHT DIFFERENCES IN PERFORMANCE WERE FOUND PRE- VS. POST- MEDITATION RETREAT. BIASING TOWARD THE LOCAL STIMULI IN THE GLOBAL-LOCAL TASK AND NEGATIVE CORRELATION OF PREVIOUS MEDITATION EXPERIENCE WITH ATTENTIONAL BLINK PERFORMANCE IS CONSISTENT WITH ISHA PRACTICES BEING FOCUSED-ATTENTION PRACTICES. GIVEN THE RELATIVELY SMALL EFFECT SIZES AND THE ABSENCE OF A CONTROL GROUP, OUR RESULTS DO NOT ALLOW CLEAR SUPPORT NOR REJECTION OF THE HYPOTHESIS OF MEDITATION-DRIVEN NEURONAL PLASTICITY IN THE ATTENTIONAL SYSTEM FOR ISHA YOGA PRACTICE.	2013	
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                             
3 2890  23 YOGA: POTENTIAL BENEFITS FOR PERSONS WHO STUTTER. YOGA HAS BEEN DEMONSTRATED TO MODULATE AUTONOMIC NERVOUS SYSTEM ACTIVITY, DECREASING ANXIETY AND STRESS, AND IMPROVING QUALITY OF LIFE. THIS PRELIMINARY STUDY SOUGHT TO EXAMINE THE USE OF YOGIC TECHNIQUES ON PERSONS WHO STUTTER GIVEN THE INTERACTION BETWEEN PHYSIOLOGICAL AROUSAL/ANXIETY AND STUTTERING THAT CURRENT MULTIFACTORIAL MODELS OF STUTTERING PROPOSE. FOUR PARTICIPANTS (M = 52 YR, SD = 10; 2 FEMALE, 2 MALE), RECRUITED FROM LOCAL STUTTERING SUPPORT GROUPS IN THE GREATER PHILADELPHIA COMMUNITY VOLUNTEERED TO PARTICIPATE. STUTTERING SEVERITY, ANXIETY, AND EXPERIENCES REGARDING STUTTERING AND COMMUNICATION WERE MEASURED AT BASELINE, POST INTERVENTION, AND AT 4 MONTHS FOLLOW-UP. THE PARTICIPANTS ATTENDED GROUP YOGA SESSIONS AND ENGAGED IN HOME PRACTICE. DESCRIPTIVE RESULTS REVEALED THAT PARTICIPANTS SHOWED IMPROVEMENTS ACROSS OUTCOME MEASURES, WITH THE MOST IMPROVEMENT RELATED TO ANXIETY. PARTICIPANTS ALSO REPORTED IMPROVEMENTS IN THEIR PERCEPTIONS ABOUT COMMUNICATION AS PER QUALITATIVE ANALYSIS OF RESPONSES TO THE OPEN-ENDED QUESTIONNAIRES. THE RESULTS SUGGEST THE POTENTIAL BENEFITS OF YOGA FOR PERSONS WHO STUTTER AND WARRANTS FURTHER STUDY USING AN EXPERIMENTAL DESIGN.	2016	
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                       
4 1734  25 PERSPECTIVES ON YOGA INPUTS IN THE MANAGEMENT OF CHRONIC PAIN. CHRONIC PAIN IS MULTI-DIMENSIONAL. AT THE PHYSICAL LEVEL ITSELF, BEYOND THE NOCICEPTIVE PATHWAY, THERE IS HYPER AROUSAL STATE OF THE COMPONENTS OF THE NERVOUS SYSTEM, WHICH NEGATIVELY INFLUENCES TENSION COMPONENT OF THE MUSCLES, PATTERNS OF BREATHING, ENERGY LEVELS AND MINDSET, ALL OF WHICH EXACERBATE THE DISTRESS AND AFFECT THE QUALITY OF LIFE OF THE INDIVIDUAL AND FAMILY. BEGINNING WITH THE PHYSICAL BODY, YOGA EVENTUALLY INFLUENCES ALL ASPECTS OF THE PERSON: VITAL, MENTAL, EMOTIONAL, INTELLECTUAL AND SPIRITUAL. IT OFFERS VARIOUS LEVELS AND APPROACHES TO RELAX, ENERGIZE, REMODEL AND STRENGTHEN BODY AND PSYCHE. THE ASANAS AND PRANAYAMA HARMONIZE THE PHYSIOLOGICAL SYSTEM AND INITIATE A "RELAXATION RESPONSE" IN THE NEURO ENDOCRINAL SYSTEM. THIS CONSISTS OF DECREASED METABOLISM, QUIETER BREATHING, STABLE BLOOD PRESSURE, REDUCED MUSCLE TENSION, LOWER HEART RATE AND SLOW BRAIN WAVE PATTERN. AS THE NEURAL DISCHARGE PATTERN GETS MODULATED, HYPER AROUSAL OF THE NERVOUS SYSTEM AND THE STATIC LOAD ON POSTURAL MUSCLE COME DOWN. THE FUNCTION OF VISCERA IMPROVES WITH THE SENSE OF RELAXATION AND SLEEP GETS DEEPER AND SUSTAINED; FATIGUE DIMINISHES. SEVERAL SUBTLE LEVEL NOTIONAL CORRECTIONS CAN HAPPEN IN CASE THE SUBJECT MEDITATES AND THAT CHANGES THE CONTEXT OF THE DISEASE, PAIN AND THE MEANING OF LIFE. MEDITATION AND PRANAYAMA, ALONG WITH RELAXING ASANAS, CAN HELP INDIVIDUALS DEAL WITH THE EMOTIONAL ASPECTS OF CHRONIC PAIN, REDUCE ANXIETY AND DEPRESSION EFFECTIVELY AND IMPROVE THE QUALITY OF LIFE PERCEIVED.	2010	
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                   
5  760  31 EFFECT OF SUDARSANKRIYA YOGA PRACTICES ON P300 AMPLITUDE AND LATENCY. THE COGNITIVE ABILITY WHICH WAS PERCEIVED AS A CONSTANT TRAIT, IS NOW UNDERSTOOD TO BE UPGRADED BY ADAPTIVE AND EXTENDED TRAINING. YOGA PRACTICES ARE KNOWN TO SHARPEN THE INTELLECT AND ENHANCE CONCENTRATION. IN THE INITIAL PERIOD OF PRACTICING YOGA AS AN ALTERNATIVE/SUPPORTING TOOL TO MEDICAL LINE OF TREATMENT, IT IS ESSENTIAL TO INVESTIGATE EFFECT OF YOGA ON COGNITIVE ABILITY USING OBJECTIVE METHOD, IN ORDER TO ESTABLISH EVIDENCES. HENCE, AIM OF THIS STUDY WAS TO EXPLORE THE EFFECT OF REGULAR PRACTICE OF SUDARSANKRIYA YOGA ON AUDITORY EVENT RELATED POTENTIAL (P300) BY RECORDING AND COMPARING PEAK LATENCY AND AMPLITUDE. THE PARTICIPANTS WERE DIVIDED INTO THREE GROUPS WITH GROUP I AND GROUP II PARTICIPANTS PRACTICING SUDARSANKRIYA YOGA FOR MORE THAN 36 MONTHS AND LESS THAN 36 MONTHS RESPECTIVELY. GROUP III WERE NON-PRACTITIONERS WITH NO PRIOR PRACTICE OF ANY FORM OF YOGA. TWENTY PARTICIPANTS IN EACH GROUP WITH A TOTAL OF 60 PARTICIPANTS BETWEEN 40 TO 65 YEARS OF AGE WERE RECRUITED FOR THE STUDY. RESULTS REVEALED A SIGNIFICANT DIFFERENCE FOR MEAN LATENCY AND AMPLITUDE BETWEEN THREE GROUPS. FINDINGS OF THE CURRENT STUDY SUGGEST THAT SUDARSANKRIYA YOGA PRACTICES SLOWS DOWN THE PROCESS OF AGING EFFECT OR MAINTAINS ON COGNITIVE ABILITY IN ADULTS.	2021	
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                              
6  677  33 EFFECT OF A YOGA BASED MEDITATION TECHNIQUE ON EMOTIONAL REGULATION, SELF-COMPASSION AND MINDFULNESS IN COLLEGE STUDENTS. BACKGROUND: EMOTION REGULATION IS OFTEN A CHALLENGE FOR THE COLLEGE STUDENTS. YOGA PRACTICE HAS BEEN SHOWN TO REDUCE STRESS AND IMPROVE MINDFULNESS THAT IS RELATED TO EMOTION REGULATION. MASTERING EMOTIONS TECHNIQUE (MEMT) IS ONE OF THE YOGA-BASED MEDITATION TECHNIQUES THAT ARE DESIGNED TO CONTROL EMOTIONS AMONG PRACTITIONERS. HOWEVER, TO THE BEST OF OUR KNOWLEDGE, THERE IS NO KNOWN STUDY REPORTING ITS SCIENTIFIC EVIDENCE-BASED EFFECTS ON EMOTION AND ITS RELATED VARIABLES. THUS, THIS STUDY WAS CONDUCTED TO EVALUATE THE EFFECT OF MEMT ON EMOTION REGULATION, SELF-COMPASSION, AND MINDFULNESS IN COLLEGE STUDENTS. MATERIALS AND METHODS: SEVENTY-TWO SUBJECTS WITH THE AGE VARIED FROM 18 TO 25 YEARS WERE RECRUITED FROM A RESIDENTIAL COLLEGE. ALL THE SUBJECTS UNDERWENT MEMT FOR THE DURATION OF 45 MIN A DAY FOR A PERIOD OF 2 WEEKS. ASSESSMENTS SUCH AS EMOTIONAL REGULATION QUESTIONNAIRE (ERQ), THE POSITIVE AND NEGATIVE AFFECT SCHEDULE (PANAS), SELF-COMPASSION SCALE (SCS), AND MINDFUL ATTENTION AWARENESS SCALE (MAAS) WERE TAKEN BEFORE AND AFTER THE INTERVENTION. RESULTS: RESULTS OF THIS STUDY SHOWED A SIGNIFICANT INCREASE IN THE SCORES OF COGNITIVE REAPPRAISAL, POSITIVE AFFECT, SELF-COMPASSION, AND MAAS ALONG WITH A SIGNIFICANT REDUCTION IN THE SCORES OF NEGATIVE AFFECT, AND EXPRESSIVE SUPPRESSION AFTER THE PRACTICE OF MEMT COMPARED TO ITS RESPECTIVE BASELINE. CONCLUSIONS: RESULTS OF THIS STUDY SUGGEST THAT PRACTICE OF MEMT IS EFFECTIVE IN IMPROVING EMOTION REGULATION, POSITIVE AFFECTS, SELF-COMPASSION, AND MINDFULNESS WHILE IN REDUCING NEGATIVE AFFECTS AMONG COLLEGE STUDENTS.	2018	
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                               
7 2085  33 THE EFFECT OF LONG TERM COMBINED YOGA PRACTICE ON THE BASAL METABOLIC RATE OF HEALTHY ADULTS. BACKGROUND: DIFFERENT PROCEDURES PRACTICED IN YOGA HAVE STIMULATORY OR INHIBITORY EFFECTS ON THE BASAL METABOLIC RATE WHEN STUDIED ACUTELY. IN DAILY LIFE HOWEVER, THESE PROCEDURES ARE USUALLY PRACTICED IN COMBINATION. THE PURPOSE OF THE PRESENT STUDY WAS TO INVESTIGATE THE NET CHANGE IN THE BASAL METABOLIC RATE (BMR) OF INDIVIDUALS ACTIVELY ENGAGING IN A COMBINATION OF YOGA PRACTICES (ASANA OR YOGIC POSTURES, MEDITATION AND PRANAYAMA OR BREATHING EXERCISES) FOR A MINIMUM PERIOD OF SIX MONTHS, AT A RESIDENTIAL YOGA EDUCATION AND RESEARCH CENTER AT BANGALORE. METHODS: THE MEASURED BMR OF INDIVIDUALS PRACTICING YOGA THROUGH A COMBINATION OF PRACTICES WAS COMPARED WITH THAT OF CONTROL SUBJECTS WHO DID NOT PRACTICE YOGA BUT LED SIMILAR LIFESTYLES. RESULTS: THE BMR OF THE YOGA PRACTITIONERS WAS SIGNIFICANTLY LOWER THAN THAT OF THE NON-YOGA GROUP, AND WAS LOWER BY ABOUT 13 % WHEN ADJUSTED FOR BODY WEIGHT (P < 0.001). THIS DIFFERENCE PERSISTED WHEN THE GROUPS WERE STRATIFIED BY GENDER; HOWEVER, THE DIFFERENCE IN BMR ADJUSTED FOR BODY WEIGHT WAS GREATER IN WOMEN THAN MEN (ABOUT 8 AND 18% RESPECTIVELY). IN ADDITION, THE MEAN BMR OF THE YOGA GROUP WAS SIGNIFICANTLY LOWER THAN THEIR PREDICTED VALUES, WHILE THE MEAN BMR OF NON-YOGA GROUP WAS COMPARABLE WITH THEIR PREDICTED VALUES DERIVED FROM 1985 WHO/FAO/UNU PREDICTIVE EQUATIONS. CONCLUSION: THIS STUDY SHOWS THAT THERE IS A SIGNIFICANTLY REDUCED BMR, PROBABLY LINKED TO REDUCED AROUSAL, WITH THE LONG TERM PRACTICE OF YOGA USING A COMBINATION OF STIMULATORY AND INHIBITORY YOGIC PRACTICES.	2006	
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                    
8 1496  30 INTRACEREBRAL PAIN PROCESSING IN A YOGA MASTER WHO CLAIMS NOT TO FEEL PAIN DURING MEDITATION. WE RECORDED MAGNETOENCEPHALOGRAPHY (MEG) AND FUNCTIONAL MAGNETIC RESONANCE IMAGING (FMRI) FOLLOWING NOXIOUS LASER STIMULATION IN A YOGA MASTER WHO CLAIMS NOT TO FEEL PAIN WHEN MEDITATING. AS FOR BACKGROUND MEG ACTIVITY, THE POWER OF ALPHA FREQUENCY BANDS PEAKING AT AROUND 10 HZ WAS MUCH INCREASED DURING MEDITATION OVER OCCIPITAL, PARIETAL AND TEMPORAL REGIONS, WHEN COMPARED WITH THE NON-MEDITATIVE STATE, WHICH MIGHT MEAN THE SUBJECT WAS VERY RELAXED, THOUGH HE DID NOT FALL ASLEEP, DURING MEDITATION. PRIMARY PAIN-RELATED CORTICAL ACTIVITIES RECORDED FROM PRIMARY (SI) AND SECONDARY SOMATOSENSORY CORTICES (SII) BY MEG WERE VERY WEAK OR ABSENT DURING MEDITATION. AS FOR FMRI RECORDING, THERE WERE REMARKABLE CHANGES IN LEVELS OF ACTIVITY IN THE THALAMUS, SII-INSULA (MAINLY THE INSULA) AND CINGULATE CORTEX BETWEEN MEDITATION AND NON-MEDITATION. ACTIVITIES IN ALL THREE REGIONS WERE INCREASED DURING NON-MEDITATION, SIMILAR TO RESULTS IN NORMAL SUBJECTS. IN CONTRAST, ACTIVITIES IN ALL THREE REGIONS WERE WEAKER DURING MEDITATION, AND THE LEVEL WAS LOWER THAN THE BASELINE IN THE THALAMUS. RECENT NEUROIMAGING AND ELECTROPHYSIOLOGICAL STUDIES HAVE CLARIFIED THAT THE EMOTIONAL ASPECT OF PAIN PERCEPTION MAINLY INVOLVES THE INSULA AND CINGULATE CORTEX. THOUGH WE CANNOT CLEARLY EXPLAIN THIS UNUSUAL CONDITION IN THE YOGA MASTER, A CHANGE OF MULTIPLE REGIONS RELATING TO PAIN PERCEPTION COULD BE RESPONSIBLE, SINCE PAIN IS A COMPLEX SENSORY AND EMOTIONAL EXPERIENCE.	2005	
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                      
9 1559  27 LONG-TERM VIHANGAM YOGA MEDITATION AND SCORES ON TESTS OF ATTENTION. ALTHOUGH THE LITERATURE INDICATES THAT MEDITATION HAS BENEFICIAL EFFECTS ON SEVERAL ASPECTS OF HUMAN FUNCTIONING, FEW STUDIES HAVE SPECIFICALLY INVESTIGATED THE EFFECTS OF MEDITATION ON VARIOUS DOMAINS OF ATTENTION. THIS STUDY WAS CONDUCTED TO EXAMINE THE DIFFERENCES IN VARIOUS DOMAINS OF ATTENTION BETWEEN LONG-TERM CONCENTRATIVE MEDITATORS VERSUS MATCHED CONTROLS. 15 PRACTITIONERS OF VIHANGAM YOGA (> 10 YR. EXPERIENCE) WERE ENROLLED IN THE STUDY. CONTROLS MATCHED ON AGE, SEX, AND YEARS OF EDUCATION WERE RECRUITED. BOTH GROUPS WERE ADMINISTERED THE STROOP, TRAIL-MAKING, AND DIGIT SYMBOL SUBSTITUTION TESTS AS WELL AS THE DIGIT FORWARD AND DIGIT BACKWARD TESTS. THE GROUP OF VIHANGAM YOGIS HAD SIGNIFICANTLY BETTER MEAN PERFORMANCE ON ALL TESTS OF ATTENTION. LONG-TERM VIHANGAM YOGA MEDITATION IMPROVES ATTENTION SPAN, PROCESSING SPEED, ATTENTION ALTERNATION ABILITY, AND PERFORMANCE IN INTERFERENCE TESTS.	2010	
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                           
10 1919  24 ROLE OF YOGA AND MEDITATION IN THE CONTEXT OF DYSFUNCTIONAL SELF: A HYPOTHETICO-INTEGRATIVE APPROACH. AARON T. BECK DESCRIBES HABITUAL PATTERNS OF SCHEMAS (IE, ORGANIZED PATTERNS OF THOUGHT OR BEHAVIOR) AS VITAL ELEMENTS OF EMOTIONAL AND BEHAVIORAL EXPERIENCE, WHEREAS BIASED PROCESSING OF INFORMATION ACCOMPANIES PSYCHOPATHOLOGICAL STATES. IN THIS ARTICLE, THE AUTHORS PROPOSE A HYPOTHETICO-INTEGRATIVE APPROACH TO UNDERSTANDING THE ROLE OF YOGA AND MEDITATION. THIS APPROACH IS BASED ON THE BACKGROUND OF BECK'S MODEL OF THE PSYCHOPATHOLOGY OF THE DYSFUNCTIONAL SELF. THE AUTHORS HAVE FOUND THAT THE PRACTICES COMMON TO MOST FORMS OF YOGA AND MEDITATION ARE (1) FOCUSING OF ATTENTION; (2) CREATING A STATE OF RELAXATION; AND (3) DEVELOPING MINDFULNESS THROUGH EFFERENT ATTENUATION, SENSORY ATTENUATION, AND NONANALYTIC ATTENTION. BIOLOGICAL STUDIES OF MEDITATION AND YOGA HAVE FOUND A TENDENCY TOWARD USE OF THE RELAXATION RESPONSE, THE INVOLVEMENT OF THE ATTENTIONAL NETWORKS, AND, LIKELY, THE CINGULATECORTEX, PARTICULARLY IN THE PROCESS OF BARE ATTENTION (IE, AWARENESS WITHOUT THOUGHT). THIS HIGHEST LEVEL OF NONJUDGMENTAL AWARENESS MAY HELP IN OBTAINING A BETTER-ADJUSTED RESILIENT SELF.	2014	
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                     
11  335  25 APPLYING THE S-ART FRAMEWORK TO YOGA: EXPLORING THE SELF-REGULATORY ACTION OF YOGA PRACTICE IN TWO CULTURALLY DIVERSE SAMPLES. MINDFULNESS PRACTICES FORM THE CORE OF NUMEROUS THERAPEUTIC PROGRAMS AND INTERVENTIONS FOR STRESS REDUCTION AND THE TREATMENT OF DIFFERENT HEALTH CONDITIONS RELATED TO STRESS AND LIFE HABITS. WAYS AND MEANS TO REGULATE ONESELF EFFECTIVELY ALSO FORM THE FOUNDATION OF THE PATH OF YOGA IN THE ACCOMPLISHMENT OF HOLISTIC HEALTH AND WELL-BEING. THE SELF-AWARENESS, SELF-REGULATION, AND SELF-TRANSCENDENCE (S-ART) MODEL CAN BE CONSIDERED AS AN OVERARCHING NEUROBIOLOGICAL FRAMEWORK TO EXPLAIN THE SELF-REGULATORY MECHANISMS OF WELL-BEING PRESENT IN MINDFULNESS-BASED PRACTICES. THE CURRENT STUDY, BY CONNECTING AND APPLYING THE S-ART FRAMEWORK TO THE SELF-REGULATORY MECHANISMS IN YOGA AND GENERATING RELATED HYPOTHESES, PROVIDES A THEORY-LED EXPLANATION OF THE ACTION OF YOGA PRACTICES, WHICH IS SPARSE IN THE LITERATURE. TESTING THE S-ART MODEL IN YOGA IN TWO CULTURALLY DIVERSE SAMPLES, ASSESSING THE MODEL-MAPPED PSYCHOLOGICAL MECHANISMS OF ACTION, AND EXPLORING THE INFLUENCE OF PERSEVERANCE IN YOGA PRACTICE ARE THE ORIGINAL CONTRIBUTIONS OF THIS STUDY. THE STUDY SAMPLE COMPRISED 362 YOGA PRACTITIONERS AND NON-PRACTITIONERS (197 INDIAN AND 165 SPANISH), WHO COMPLETED FOUR TESTS OF PSYCHOLOGICAL VARIABLES INDICATIVE OF THE AFOREMENTIONED THREE S-ART ABILITIES. THESE TESTS WERE MULTIDIMENSIONAL ASSESSMENT OF INTEROCEPTIVE AWARENESS (MAIA), EXPERIENCES QUESTIONNAIRE-DECENTERING (EQ-D) SUBSCALE, DIFFICULTIES IN EMOTION REGULATION SCALE (DERS), AND RELATIONAL COMPASSION SCALE (RCS). THE RESULTS INDICATED SIGNIFICANTLY BETTER SELF-AWARENESS AND SELF-REGULATORY ABILITIES IN YOGA PRACTITIONERS (INDIAN AND SPANISH IN A COMBINATION) THAN NON-PRACTITIONERS, REFLECTED IN HIGHER LEVELS OF INTEROCEPTIVE AWARENESS AND DECENTERING ABILITIES. MOREOVER, PERSEVERANCE IN YOGA PRACTICE ACTED AS A SIGNIFICANT PREDICTOR OF SELF-AWARENESS AND SELF-REGULATION IN PRACTITIONERS. AN ANALYSIS OF EACH CULTURAL SAMPLE REVEALED SOME DIFFERENCES. YOGA PRACTICE AND PERSEVERANCE IN IT ACTED AS A SIGNIFICANT PREDICTOR OF INTEROCEPTIVE AWARENESS AND DECENTERING IN INDIAN PRACTITIONERS HAVING MORE THAN 1 YEAR OF SUSTAINED YOGA PRACTICE, BUT FOR THE SPANISH PARTICIPANTS, PHYSICAL EXERCISE AND FREQUENCY OF YOGA PRACTICE ACTED AS BETTER PREDICTORS OF INTEROCEPTIVE AWARENESS AND DECENTERING IN COMPARISON TO YOGA PRACTICE AND PERSEVERANCE IN IT. THE OBTAINED RESULTS SUGGESTED THAT THE S-ART MODEL PROVIDED PRELIMINARY BUT PROMISING EVIDENCE FOR THE SELF-REGULATORY MECHANISMS OF ACTION IN YOGA PRACTICE WITHIN A CULTURALLY DIVERSE SAMPLE OF YOGA PRACTITIONERS. THIS STUDY ALSO WIDENS THE SCOPE OF GENERATING FURTHER HYPOTHESES USING THE S-ART THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK FOR TESTING THE SELF-REGULATORY MECHANISMS OF ACTION IN YOGA PRACTICE.	2021	

12 2752  33 YOGA PRACTICE IS ASSOCIATED WITH SUPERIOR MOTOR IMAGERY PERFORMANCE. YOGA IS AN ACTIVITY THAT AIMS TO INTEGRATE PHYSICAL, MENTAL AND SPIRITUAL ELEMENTS AND IS AN INCREASINGLY POPULAR APPROACH TO ENHANCING PHYSICAL FITNESS. THE INTEGRATION OF IMAGERY WITHIN YOGA PRACTICE IS CONSIDERED AN IMPORTANT COMPONENT AND MAY BE CRITICAL IN CONTRIBUTING TO THE BENEFITS OF YOGA THAT HAVE BEEN REPORTED. IN THIS STUDY, WE TESTED WHETHER INDIVIDUALS WHO PRACTICE YOGA DEMONSTRATE SUPERIOR PERFORMANCE ON AN OBJECTIVE MEASURE OF IMPLICIT MOTOR IMAGERY. THIRTY-SIX PARTICIPANTS (18 YOGA, 18 NON-YOGA) MATCHED FOR AGE, SEX AND HANDEDNESS, UNDERTOOK THE HAND LATERALITY RECOGNITION TASK; AN OBJECTIVE MEASURE OF IMPLICIT MOTOR IMAGERY PERFORMANCE. ACCURACY AND RESPONSE TIMES WERE GATHERED AND ANALYSED TO DETERMINE ANY GROUP DIFFERENCES AS WELL AS ANY DIFFERENCES RELATING TO THE TYPICAL HALLMARKS OF IMAGERY (I.E. DOMINANCE AND AWKWARDNESS EFFECTS) ON THE TASK. RESPONSE TIMES (RTS) IN THE YOGA GROUP WERE SIGNIFICANTLY FASTER THAN CONTROLS (P < 0.05) AND THERE WAS ALSO A TREND TOWARDS GREATER ACCURACY FOR THE YOGA GROUP (P = 0.073). DOMINANCE EFFECTS (FASTER RESPONSES TO IMAGES CORRESPONDING WITH THE DOMINANT LIMB) AND AWKWARDNESS EFFECTS (FASTER RESPONSES TO IMAGES CORRESPONDING WITH NATURAL COMPARED WITH AWKWARD POSTURES) WERE EVIDENT ACROSS GROUPS, SUPPORTING THE PARTICIPANTS' USE OF MOTOR IMAGERY IN UNDERTAKING THE TASK. ADDITIONALLY, A GROUP X AWKWARDNESS INTERACTION (P < 0.05) REVEALED THAT THE ENHANCED IMAGERY PERFORMANCE FOR THE YOGA GROUP WAS MOST PRONOUNCED FOR AWKWARD POSTURES. THIS IS THE FIRST STUDY TO SHOW THAT YOGA PRACTICE IS ASSOCIATED WITH SUPERIOR MOTOR IMAGERY PERFORMANCE; AN ASSOCIATION THAT MAY BE IMPORTANT IN EXPLAINING THE ESTABLISHED REHABILITATIVE VALUE OF YOGA FOR CHRONIC PAIN.	2017	
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                 
13 2611  22 YOGA FOR REHABILITATION: AN OVERVIEW. THE USE OF YOGA FOR REHABILITATION HAS DIVERSE APPLICATIONS. YOGA PRACTICE BENEFITED MENTALLY HANDICAPPED SUBJECTS BY IMPROVING THEIR MENTAL ABILITY, ALSO THE MOTOR CO-ORDINATION AND SOCIAL SKILLS. PHYSICALLY HANDICAPPED SUBJECTS HAD A RESTORATION OF SOME DEGREE OF FUNCTIONAL ABILITY AFTER PRACTICING YOGA. VISUALLY IMPAIRED CHILDREN CHILDREN SHOWED A SIGNIFICANT DECREASE IN THEIR ABNORMAL ANXIETY LEVELS WHEN THEY PRACTICED YOGA FOR THREE WEEKS, WHILE A PROGRAM OF PHYSICAL ACTIVITY HAD NO SUCH EFFECT. SOCIALLY DISADVANTAGED ADULTS (PRISONERS IN A JAIL) AND CHILDREN IN A REMAND HOME SHOWED SIGNIFICANT IMPROVEMENT IN SLEEP, APPETITE AND GENERAL WELL BEING, AS WELL AS A DECREASE IN PHYSIOLOGICAL AROUSAL. THE PRACTICE OF MEDITATION WAS REPORTED TO DECREASE THE DEGREE OF SUBSTANCE (MARIJUANA) ABUSE, BY STRENGTHENING THE MENTAL RESOLVE AND DECREASING THE ANXIETY. ANOTHER IMPORTANT AREA IS THE APPLICATION OF YOGA (AND INDEED, LIFESTYLE CHANGE), IN THE REHABILITATION OF PATIENTS WITH CORONARY ARTERY DISEASE. FINALLY, THE POSSIBLE ROLE OF YOGA IN IMPROVING THE MENTAL STATE AND GENERAL WELL BEING OF HIV POSITIVE PERSONS AND PATIENTS WITH AIDS, IS BEING EXPLORED.	1997	
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                        
14  277  28 ADDITIONAL PRACTICE OF YOGA BREATHING WITH INTERMITTENT BREATH HOLDING ENHANCES PSYCHOLOGICAL FUNCTIONS IN YOGA PRACTITIONERS: A RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED TRIAL. BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE: THE PRACTICE OF YOGA IS ASSOCIATED WITH ENHANCED PSYCHOLOGICAL WELLBEING. THE CURRENT STUDY ASSESSED THE CORRELATION BETWEEN THE DURATION OF YOGA PRACTICE WITH STATE MINDFULNESS, MIND-WANDERING AND STATE ANXIETY. ALSO, WE EXAMINED IF AN ADDITIONAL 20 MIN OF YOGA BREATHING WITH INTERMITTENT BREATH HOLDING (EXPERIMENTAL GROUP) FOR 8 WEEKS WOULD AFFECT THESE PSYCHOLOGICAL VARIABLES MORE THAN REGULAR YOGA PRACTICE (CONTROL GROUP) ALONE. METHODS: ONE HUNDRED SIXTEEN SUBJECTS WERE RANDOMLY ASSIGNED TO EXPERIMENTAL (N = 60) AND CONTROL (N = 56) GROUPS. STATE MINDFULNESS ATTENTION AWARENESS SCALE (SMAAS), MIND-WANDERING QUESTIONNAIRE (MWQ) AND STATE ANXIETY INVENTORY WERE ADMINISTERED AT BASELINE AND AT THE END OF 8 WEEKS. RESULTS: BASELINE ASSESSMENT REVEALED A POSITIVE CORRELATION BETWEEN DURATION OF YOGA PRACTICE WITH SMAAS SCORES AND NEGATIVE CORRELATION WITH MWQ AND STATE ANXIETY SCORES. AT THE END OF 8 WEEKS, BOTH GROUPS DEMONSTRATED ENHANCED PSYCHOLOGICAL FUNCTIONS, BUT THE EXPERIMENTAL GROUP RECEIVING ADDITIONAL YOGA BREATHING PERFORMED BETTER THAN THE GROUP PRACTICING YOGA ALONE. CONCLUSION: AN ADDITIONAL PRACTICE OF YOGA BREATHING WITH INTERMITTENT BREATH HOLDING WAS FOUND TO ENHANCE THE PSYCHOLOGICAL FUNCTIONS IN YOUNG ADULT YOGA PRACTITIONERS.	2018	
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                    
15 1972  33 SHORT-TERM SAHAJA YOGA MEDITATION TRAINING MODULATES BRAIN STRUCTURE AND SPONTANEOUS ACTIVITY IN THE EXECUTIVE CONTROL NETWORK. INTRODUCTION: WHILE CROSS-SECTIONAL STUDIES HAVE SHOWN NEURAL CHANGES IN LONG-TERM MEDITATORS, THEY MIGHT BE CONFOUNDED BY SELF-SELECTION AND POTENTIAL BASELINE DIFFERENCES BETWEEN MEDITATORS AND NON MEDITATORS. PROSPECTIVE LONGITUDINAL STUDIES OF THE EFFECTS OF MEDITATION IN NAIVE SUBJECTS ARE MORE CONCLUSIVE WITH RESPECT TO CAUSAL INFERENCES, BUT RELATED EVIDENCE IS SO FAR LIMITED. METHODS: HERE, WE ASSESSED THE EFFECTS OF A 4-WEEK SAHAJA YOGA MEDITATION TRAINING ON GRAY MATTER DENSITY AND SPONTANEOUS RESTING-STATE BRAIN ACTIVITY IN A GROUP OF 12 MEDITATION-NAIVE HEALTHY ADULTS. RESULTS: COMPARED WITH 30 CONTROL SUBJECTS, THE PARTICIPANTS TO MEDITATION TRAINING SHOWED INCREASED GRAY MATTER DENSITY AND CHANGES IN THE COHERENCE OF INTRINSIC BRAIN ACTIVITY IN TWO ADJACENT REGIONS OF THE RIGHT INFERIOR FRONTAL GYRUS ENCOMPASSING THE ANTERIOR COMPONENT OF THE EXECUTIVE CONTROL NETWORK. BOTH THESE MEASURES CORRELATED WITH SELF-REPORTED WELL-BEING SCORES IN THE MEDITATION GROUP. CONCLUSIONS: THE SIGNIFICANT IMPACT OF A BRIEF MEDITATION TRAINING ON BRAIN REGIONS ASSOCIATED WITH ATTENTION, SELF-CONTROL, AND SELF-AWARENESS MAY REFLECT THE ENGAGEMENT OF COGNITIVE CONTROL SKILLS IN SEARCHING FOR A STATE OF MENTAL SILENCE, A DISTINCTIVE FEATURE OF SAHAJA YOGA MEDITATION. THE MANIFOLD IMPLICATIONS OF THESE FINDINGS INVOLVE BOTH MANAGERIAL AND REHABILITATIVE SETTINGS CONCERNED WITH WELL-BEING AND EMOTIONAL STATE IN NORMAL AND PATHOLOGICAL CONDITIONS.	2019	
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                          
16 2556  20 YOGA FOR CHILDREN. THERE IS AN INCREASING INTEREST IN THE USE OF YOGA FOR CHILDREN TO CALM THE MIND AND INCREASE HEALTH AND WELL BEING. DESPITE SCANT BUT INCREASING EVIDENCE SUPPORTING THE EFFICACY OF YOGA IN CHILDREN, SPECIAL YOGA PROGRAMS WITHIN SCHOOLS ARE BEING DEVELOPED FOR CHILDREN AND ADOLESCENTS. THIS INCREASING POPULARITY OF THE POTENTIAL BENEFITS OF YOGA MAY ENCOURAGE PARENTS TO CONSIDER YOGA FOR THEIR CHILDREN AND REQUEST REFERRALS OR CLARIFICATION OF THE PURPORTED EFFECTS. A DESCRIPTION OF THE PHILOSOPHICAL BASIS OF YOGA, THE BASIC COMPONENTS OF A YOGA PRACTICE, SAFETY CONCERNS, AND HOW TO LOCATE AND EVALUATE A YOGA PROGRAM FOR CHILDREN WILL BE ADDRESSED.	2009	
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                            
17 2898  23 [EFFECTS OF FITNESS TRAINING AND YOGA ON WELL-BEING STRESS, SOCIAL COMPETENCE AND BODY IMAGE]. OBJECTIVES: AIMS OF OUR STUDY WERE TO DESCRIBE AND COMPARE INFLUENCES FROM A PHYSICAL ACTIVITY PROGRAM AND A YOGA PROGRAM ON WELL-BEING, MOOD, STRESSCOPING, BODY-IMAGE AND SOCIAL COMPETENCE IN HEALTHY PEOPLE. METHODS: 18 PERSONS ATTENDING A GYM AND 21 TAKING PART IN A YOGA PROGRAM ANSWERED FOLLOWING QUESTIONNAIRES BEFORE ENTERING THE PROGRAM AND AFTER TAKING PART FOR 20 UNITS: BODY-IMAGE-QUESTIONNAIRE (25), SYMPTOM-CHECKLIST- 90R (8), COMPLAINT- LIST (31), ADJECTIVE MOOD-SCALE (32) AND A VISUAL ANALOGUE SCALE FOR ASSESSING STRESS-LEVEL (10). RESULTS: STATISTICAL ANALYSES SHOW SIGNIFICANT IMPROVEMENT IN SOCIAL COMPETENCE IN BOTH TRAINING GROUPS; THE GYM-GROUP REPORT REDUCED SEXUAL DISCOMFORT, WHEREAS PEOPLE TAKING PART IN YOGA-GROUP SHOW A REDUCTION IN SOMATIZATION AND BODY-RELATED ANXIETY AS WELL AS AN IMPROVEMENT IN PHYSICAL AND EMOTIONAL WELL-BEING. CONCLUSION: OUR FINDINGS SUPPORT THE EVIDENCE THAT PHYSICAL ACTIVITY IN GENERAL IMPROVES PSYCHOLOGICAL WELL-BEING, HOWEVER, GYM AND YOGA SEEM TO HAVE DIFFERENT PSYCHOLOGICAL IMPACTS. FUTURE RESEARCH SHOULD FOCUS ON COMPARING THE PSYCHOLOGICAL EFFECTS OF DIFFERENT PHYSICAL ACTIVITY INTERVENTIONS IN PREVENTION PROGRAMMES AS WELL AS EXERCISE PRESCRIPTIONS IN PATIENTS WITH MENTAL ILLNESS.	2009	
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                             
18 2721  25 YOGA MEETS POSITIVE PSYCHOLOGY: EXAMINING THE INTEGRATION OF HEDONIC (GRATITUDE) AND EUDAIMONIC (MEANING) WELLBEING IN RELATION TO THE EXTENT OF YOGA PRACTICE. THE PRESENT STUDY AIMS TO EXPLORE THE EXISTENCE OF A RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN THE EXTENT OF YOGA PRACTICE AND TWO DIMENSIONS OF PSYCHOLOGICAL WELLBEING: MEANING IN LIFE AND GRATITUDE. BOTH OF THE VARIABLES ARE POSITIVE PSYCHOLOGY CONSTRUCTS; THERE IS THEORETICAL AFFINITY AND EMPIRICAL EVIDENCE THAT THEY ARE RELATED TO OVERALL PSYCHOLOGICAL WELLBEING. ONE HUNDRED AND TWENTY FOUR PARTICIPANTS AGED 18 YEARS AND ABOVE, WITH YOGA EXPERIENCE RANGING FROM NONE TO OVER SIX YEARS, RESPONDED TO A NUMBER OF SCALES. THE EXTENT OF YOGA PRACTICE WAS MEASURED BY THE NUMBER OF YEARS DURING WHICH INDIVIDUALS PRACTICED YOGA AT LEAST TWO TIMES A WEEK. PARTICIPANTS RESPONDED TO THE FOLLOWING SCALES: MLQ (MEANING IN LIFE QUESTIONNAIRE) AND GQ-6 (GRATITUDE QUESTIONNAIRE). THIS STUDY HYPOTHESISED THAT THE NUMBER OF YEARS PRACTICING YOGA WOULD BE POSITIVELY CORRELATED TO THE SCORE OBTAINED ON THE AFOREMENTIONED SCALES. POSITIVE CORRELATIONS WERE IDENTIFIED BETWEEN THE EXTENT OF YOGA PRACTICE AND MEANING IN LIFE AND GRATITUDE. IMPORTANT IMPLICATIONS REGARDING THE CONTRIBUTION OF YOGA TO BOTH HEDONIC AND EUDAIMONIC HAPPINESS ARE DISCUSSED.	2014	
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                        
19 1777  25 PRACTICING HATHA-YOGA, SENSE OF COHERENCE AND SENSE OF AGENCY. NEUROPHENOMENOLOGICAL APPROACH. BACKGROUND: A GROWING BODY OF EVIDENCE SUPPORTS THE BELIEF THAT YOGA BENEFITS PHYSICAL AND MENTAL HEALTH. THE AIM OF THE STUDY IS TO INVESTIGATE WHETHER THE SENSE OF COHERENCE AND SENSE OF AGENCY ARE MORE DEVELOPED IN PEOPLE PRACTICING HATHA-YOGA THAN IN THE GROUP OF PEOPLE WHO HAVE NEVER PRACTICED YOGA. METHODS: TAHE, SOC-29 QUESTIONNAIRE AND SHORT MICROPHENOMENOLOGICAL INTERVIEW CONDUCTED ON A GROUP OF 15 PEOPLE (8 YOGA INSTRUCTORS, 7 IN THE CONTROL GROUP). RESULTS: IT HAS BEEN SHOWN THAT THE STUDY GROUP HAS SIGNIFICANTLY HIGHER SCORES IN BOTH THE SENSE OF AGENCY AND SENSE OF COHERENCE THAN THE CONTROL GROUP. IN ADDITION, A STATISTICALLY SIGNIFICANT CORRELATION WAS OBSERVED BETWEEN THE PART OF THE VALUES MENTIONED ABOVE. CONCLUSIONS: THERE ARE INDICATIONS THAT THE HATHA-YOGA EXERCISE INCREASES THE SENSE OF AGENCY, WHICH IN THE LONG RUN CAN CONTRIBUTE TO BETTER MENTAL HEALTH. IN ORDER TO FIND A CLEAR AND CERTAIN LINK BETWEEN THE SENSE OF COHERENCE AND THE SENSE OF AGENCY ADDITIONAL RESEARCH IS NECESSARY.	2017	
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                    
20 2461  28 YOGA AS A NOVEL ADJUVANT THERAPY FOR PATIENTS WITH IDIOPATHIC INFLAMMATORY MYOPATHIES. CONTEXT: RECENT STUDIES HAVE DEMONSTRATED THAT PHYSICAL ACTIVITY IS WELL TOLERATED BY PATIENTS WITH IDIOPATHIC INFLAMMATORY MYOPATHIES (IIMS) AND CAN HAVE ADDITIONAL BENEFITS AS AN ADJUVANT THERAPY TO PHARMACOLOGIC AGENTS, ESPECIALLY IF STARTED EARLY. TO DATE, NO STUDIES HAVE EXAMINED THE EFFECTS OF YOGA ON PATIENTS WITH IIMS. AIMS: THE AIM OF THIS STUDY WAS TO EVALUATE THE EFFECTS OF YOGA ON SELF-REPORTED DIFFICULTY IN PERFORMING ACTIVITIES OF DAILY LIVING (ADL) AND MUSCLE STRENGTH IN PATIENTS WITH MILD-TO-MODERATE IIMS. SUBJECTS AND METHODS: A LONGITUDINAL COHORT STUDY IN WHICH PARTICIPANTS WERE ASSESSED USING THE MYOSITIS ACTIVITIES PROFILE (MAP) AND MANUAL MUSCLE TESTING (MMT) BEFORE AND AFTER THE COMPLETION OF AN 8-WEEK INSTRUCTOR-GUIDED YOGA COURSE WAS PERFORMED. STATISTICAL ANALYSIS USED: WILCOXON SIGNED-RANKED TEST WAS PERFORMED FOR STATISTICAL ANALYSIS. RESULTS: THE AVERAGE POSTTREATMENT MAP SCORES OF SIX PARTICIPANTS DEMONSTRATED AN INCREASE OF 2.51 POINTS, WHILE THE AVERAGE MMT SCORE OF FOUR PARTICIPANTS DEMONSTRATED AN INCREASE OF 11 POINTS. CONCLUSIONS: THIS STUDY IS THE FIRST STUDY TO DATE TO EXAMINE THE EFFECT OF YOGA AS AN ADJUVANT COMPLEMENTARY THERAPY FOR PATIENTS WITH IIM. CONTINUED RESEARCH SHOULD BE DONE ON THE EFFECT OF YOGA AS AN ADJUVANT THERAPY, FOR IN ADDITION TO INCREASE IN MUSCLE STRENGTH AND ABILITY TO PERFORM ADL, YOGA MAY OFFER POTENTIAL IMPROVEMENTS IN MOOD, MENTAL HEALTH, AND SLEEP.	2021