1 1465 114 INJURIES AND OTHER ADVERSE EVENTS ASSOCIATED WITH YOGA PRACTICE: A SYSTEMATIC REVIEW OF EPIDEMIOLOGICAL STUDIES. OBJECTIVES: TO SYSTEMATICALLY ASSESS THE PREVALENCE OF YOGA-ASSOCIATED INJURIES AND OTHER ADVERSE EVENTS IN EPIDEMIOLOGICAL STUDIES. DESIGN: SYSTEMATIC REVIEW OF OBSERVATIONAL STUDIES. METHODS: MEDLINE/PUBMED, SCOPUS, THE COCHRANE LIBRARY, AND INDMED WERE SEARCHED THROUGH OCTOBER 2016 FOR EPIDEMIOLOGICAL STUDIES ASSESSING THE PREVALENCE OF ADVERSE EVENTS OF YOGA PRACTICE OR COMPARING THE RISK OF ANY ADVERSE EVENTS BETWEEN YOGA PRACTITIONERS AND NON-YOGA PRACTITIONERS. RESULTS: NINE OBSERVATIONAL STUDIES WITH A TOTAL 9129 YOGA PRACTITIONERS AND 9903 NON-YOGA PRACTITIONERS WERE INCLUDED. INCIDENCE PROPORTION OF ADVERSE EVENTS DURING A YOGA CLASS WAS 22.7% (95% CONFIDENCE INTERVAL [CI]=21.1%-24.3%); 12-MONTHS PREVALENCE WAS 4.6% (95%CI=3.8%-5.4%), AND LIFETIME PREVALENCE RANGED FROM 21.3% (95%CI=19.7%-22.9%) TO 61.8% (95%CI=52.8%-70.8%) OF YOGA PRACTITIONERS. SERIOUS ADVERSE EVENTS OCCURRED IN 1.9% (95%CI=1.4%-2.4%). THE MOST COMMON ADVERSE EVENTS RELATED TO THE MUSCULOSKELETAL SYSTEM; THE MOST COMMON INJURIES WERE SPRAINS AND STRAINS. COMPARED TO NON-YOGA PRACTITIONERS, YOGA PRACTITIONERS HAD A COMPARABLE RISK OF FALLS (ODDS RATIO [OR]=0.90; 95%CI=0.76-1.08), AND FALLS-RELATED INJURIES (OR=1.04; 95%CI=0.83-1.29), AND HIGHER RISK OF MENISCUS INJURIES (OR=1.72; 95%CI=1.23-2.41). CONCLUSIONS: A CONSIDERABLE PROPORTION OF YOGA PRACTITIONERS EXPERIENCED INJURIES OR OTHER ADVERSE EVENTS; HOWEVER MOST WERE MILD AND TRANSIENT AND RISKS WERE COMPARABLE TO THOSE OF NON-YOGA PRACTITIONERS. THERE IS NO NEED TO DISCOURAGE YOGA PRACTICE FOR HEALTHY PEOPLE. PEOPLE WITH SERIOUS ACUTE OR CHRONIC ILLNESSES SHOULD SEEK MEDICAL ADVICE BEFORE PRACTICING YOGA. 2018 2 473 31 CHARACTERISTICS OF YOGA USERS: RESULTS OF A NATIONAL SURVEY. BACKGROUND: THERE ARE LIMITED DATA ON THE CHARACTERISTICS OF YOGA USERS IN THE U.S. OBJECTIVE: TO CHARACTERIZE YOGA USERS, MEDICAL REASONS FOR USE, PERCEPTIONS OF HELPFULNESS, AND DISCLOSURE OF USE TO MEDICAL PROFESSIONALS. METHODS: UTILIZING CROSS-SECTIONAL SURVEY DATA FROM THE 2002 NATIONAL HEALTH INTERVIEW SURVEY (NHIS) ALTERNATIVE MEDICINE SUPPLEMENT (N = 31044), WE EXAMINED CORRELATES OF YOGA USE FOR HEALTH. THE ESTIMATED PREVALENCE FROM 2002 NHIS OF YOGA FOR HEALTH WAS 5.1% CORRESPONDING TO OVER 10 MILLION ADULTS. RESULTS: IN 2002, YOGA USERS WERE PREDOMINATELY CAUCASIAN (85%) AND FEMALE (76%) WITH A MEAN AGE OF 39.5 YEARS. COMPARED TO NON-YOGA USERS, YOGA USERS WERE MORE LIKELY FEMALE (OR 3.76, 95% CI 3.11-4.33); LESS LIKELY BLACK THAN WHITE (OR 0.65, 95% CI 0.53-0.80); TENDED TO BE YOUNGER; AND MORE LIKELY COLLEGE EDUCATED (OR 2.70, 95% CI 2.37-3.08). MUSCULOSKELETAL CONDITIONS (OR 1.61, 95% CI 1.42-1.83), MENTAL HEALTH CONDITIONS (OR 1.43, 95% CI 1.22-1.67), SEVERE SPRAINS IN THE LAST 12 MONTHS (OR 1.49, 95% CI 1.22-1.81), AND ASTHMA (OR 1.27, 95% CI 1.05-1.54) WERE INDEPENDENTLY ASSOCIATED WITH HIGHER YOGA USE, WHILE HYPERTENSION (OR 0.78, 95% CI 0.64-0.95) AND CHRONIC OBSTRUCTIVE LUNG DISEASE (OR 0.69, 95% CI 0.48-1.00) WERE ASSOCIATED WITH LOWER USE. YOGA WAS MOST COMMONLY USED TO TREAT MUSCULOSKELETAL OR MENTAL HEALTH CONDITIONS, AND MOST USERS REPORTED YOGA TO BE HELPFUL FOR THESE CONDITIONS. A MAJORITY OF YOGA USERS (61%) FELT YOGA WAS IMPORTANT IN MAINTAINING HEALTH, THOUGH ONLY 25% DISCLOSED YOGA PRACTICE TO THEIR MEDICAL PROFESSIONAL. CONCLUSIONS: WE FOUND THAT YOGA USERS ARE MORE LIKELY TO BE WHITE, FEMALE, YOUNG AND COLLEGE EDUCATED. YOGA USERS REPORT BENEFIT FOR MUSCULOSKELETAL CONDITIONS AND MENTAL HEALTH, INDICATING THAT FURTHER RESEARCH ON THE EFFICACY OF YOGA FOR THE TREATMENT AND/OR PREVENTION OF THESE CONDITIONS IS WARRANTED. 2008 3 2876 31 YOGA-RELATED INJURIES IN THE UNITED STATES FROM 2001 TO 2014. BACKGROUND: YOGA HAS BECOME MORE POPULAR AMONG PEOPLE IN THE UNITED STATES AND HAS BEEN TOUTED BY BOTH YOGA PARTICIPANTS AS WELL AS SOME PHYSICIANS AND RESEARCHERS FOR ITS HEALTH BENEFITS. WHILE THE HEALTH BENEFITS HAVE BEEN STUDIED, THE FREQUENCY OF INJURY AMONG YOGA PARTICIPANTS HAS NOT BEEN WELL DOCUMENTED. PURPOSE: INJURY INCIDENCE, RATES, AND TYPES ASSOCIATED WITH YOGA IN THE UNITED STATES HAVE NOT BEEN QUANTIFIED. THIS STUDY ESTIMATES US YOGA-ASSOCIATED INJURY INCIDENCE AND CHARACTERIZES INJURY TYPE OVER A 13-YEAR PERIOD. STUDY DESIGN: DESCRIPTIVE EPIDEMIOLOGY STUDY. METHODS: DATA FROM THE NATIONAL ELECTRONIC INJURY SURVEILLANCE SYSTEM (NEISS) FROM 2001 TO 2014 WERE USED TO ESTIMATE THE INCIDENCE AND TYPE OF YOGA-ASSOCIATED INJURIES. THE NUMBER AND AGE DISTRIBUTION OF YOGA PARTICIPANTS WAS ESTIMATED USING DATA FROM NATIONAL HEALTH STATISTICS REPORTS. THESE NATIONAL POPULATION ESTIMATES WERE APPLIED TO THE NEISS DATA TO DETERMINE INJURY RATES OVERALL AND STRATIFIED ACCORDING TO AGE CATEGORIES. RESULTS: THERE WERE 29,590 YOGA-RELATED INJURIES SEEN IN HOSPITAL EMERGENCY DEPARTMENTS FROM 2001 TO 2014. THE TRUNK (46.6%) WAS THE MOST FREQUENT REGION INJURED, AND SPRAIN/STRAIN (45.0%) ACCOUNTED FOR THE MAJORITY OF DIAGNOSES. THE INJURY RATE INCREASED OVERALL FROM 2001 TO 2014, AND IT WAS GREATEST FOR THOSE AGED 65 YEARS AND OLDER (57.9/100,000) COMPARED WITH THOSE AGED 18 TO 44 YEARS (11.9/100,000) AND 45 TO 64 YEARS (17.7/100,000) IN 2014. CONCLUSION: PARTICIPANTS AGED 65 YEARS AND OLDER HAVE A GREATER RATE OF INJURY FROM PRACTICING YOGA WHEN COMPARED WITH OTHER AGE GROUPS. MOST INJURIES SUSTAINED WERE TO THE TRUNK AND INVOLVED A SPRAIN/STRAIN. WHILE THERE ARE MANY HEALTH BENEFITS TO PRACTICING YOGA, PARTICIPANTS AND THOSE WISHING TO BECOME PARTICIPANTS SHOULD CONFER WITH A PHYSICIAN PRIOR TO ENGAGING IN PHYSICAL ACTIVITY AND PRACTICE ONLY UNDER THE GUIDANCE OF CERTIFIED INSTRUCTORS. 2016 4 2559 28 YOGA FOR CHRONIC LOW BACK PAIN: A META-ANALYSIS OF RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED TRIALS. OBJECTIVES: TO EVALUATE THE EFFICACY OF YOGA AS AN INTERVENTION FOR CHRONIC LOW BACK PAIN (CLBP) USING A META-ANALYTICAL APPROACH. RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED TRIALS (RCTS) THAT EXAMINED PAIN ANDOR FUNCTIONAL DISABILITY AS TREATMENT OUTCOMES WERE INCLUDED. POST-TREATMENT AND FOLLOW-UP OUTCOMES WERE ASSESSED. METHODS: A COMPREHENSIVE SEARCH OF RELEVANT ELECTRONIC DATABASES, FROM THE TIME OF THEIR INCEPTION UNTIL NOVEMBER 2011, WAS CONDUCTED. COHEN'S D EFFECT SIZES WERE CALCULATED AND ENTERED IN A RANDOM-EFFECTS MODEL. RESULTS: EIGHT RCTS MET THE CRITERIA FOR INCLUSION (EIGHT ASSESSING FUNCTIONAL DISABILITY AND FIVE ASSESSING PAIN) AND INVOLVED A TOTAL OF 743 PATIENTS. AT POST-TREATMENT, YOGA HAD A MEDIUM TO LARGE EFFECT ON FUNCTIONAL DISABILITY (D=0.645) AND PAIN (D=0.623). DESPITE A WIDE RANGE OF YOGA STYLES AND TREATMENT DURATIONS, HETEROGENEITY IN POST-TREATMENT EFFECT SIZES WAS LOW. FOLLOW-UP EFFECT SIZES FOR FUNCTIONAL DISABILITY AND PAIN WERE SMALLER, BUT REMAINED SIGNIFICANT (D=0.397 AND D=0.486, RESPECTIVELY); HOWEVER, THERE WAS A MODERATE TO HIGH LEVEL OF VARIABILITY IN THESE EFFECT SIZES. DISCUSSION: THE RESULTS OF THE PRESENT STUDY INDICATE THAT YOGA MAY BE AN EFFICACIOUS ADJUNCTIVE TREATMENT FOR CLBP. THE STRONGEST AND MOST CONSISTENT EVIDENCE EMERGED FOR THE SHORT-TERM BENEFITS OF YOGA ON FUNCTIONAL DISABILITY. HOWEVER, BEFORE ANY DEFINITIVE CONCLUSIONS CAN BE DRAWN, THERE ARE A NUMBER OF METHODOLOGICAL CONCERNS THAT NEED TO BE ADDRESSED. IN PARTICULAR, IT IS RECOMMENDED THAT FUTURE RCTS INCLUDE AN ACTIVE CONTROL GROUP TO DETERMINE WHETHER YOGA HAS SPECIFIC TREATMENT EFFECTS AND WHETHER YOGA OFFERS ANY ADVANTAGES OVER TRADITIONAL EXERCISE PROGRAMS AND OTHER ALTERNATIVE THERAPIES FOR CLBP. 2013 5 2178 29 THE EFFECTS OF YOGA ON PAIN, MOBILITY, AND QUALITY OF LIFE IN PATIENTS WITH KNEE OSTEOARTHRITIS: A SYSTEMATIC REVIEW. OBJECTIVE. TO SYSTEMATICALLY ASSESS THE EFFECTS OF YOGA ON PAIN, MOBILITY, AND QUALITY OF LIFE IN PATIENTS WITH KNEE OSTEOARTHRITIS. METHODS. PUBMED, MEDLINE, EMBASE, THE COCHRANE CENTRAL REGISTER OF CONTROLLED TRIALS, PHYSIOTHERAPY EVIDENCE DATABASE (PEDRO), AND OTHER SOURCES WERE SEARCHED SYSTEMATICALLY IN THIS STUDY. TWO REVIEWERS IDENTIFIED ELIGIBLE STUDIES AND EXTRACTED DATA INDEPENDENTLY. DOWNS AND BLACK'S QUALITY INDEX WERE USED TO EVALUATE THE METHODOLOGICAL QUALITY OF THE INCLUDED STUDIES. RESULTS. A TOTAL OF 9 ARTICLES (6 STUDIES) INVOLVING 372 PATIENTS WITH KNEE OSTEOARTHRITIS MET THE INCLUSION CRITERIA. THE MOST COMMON YOGA PROTOCOL IS 40~90 MINUTES/SESSION, LASTING FOR AT LEAST 8 WEEKS. THE EFFECT OF YOGA ON PAIN RELIEF AND FUNCTION IMPROVEMENT COULD BE SEEN AFTER TWO-WEEK INTERVENTION. CONCLUSION. THIS SYSTEMATIC REVIEW SHOWED THAT YOGA MIGHT HAVE POSITIVE EFFECTS IN RELIEVING PAIN AND MOBILITY ON PATIENTS WITH KOA, BUT THE EFFECTS ON QUALITY OF LIFE (QOL) ARE UNCLEAR. BESIDES, MORE OUTCOME MEASURE RELATED TO MENTAL HEALTH OF YOGA EFFECTS ON PEOPLE WITH KOA SHOULD BE CONDUCTED. 2016 6 78 38 A LARGE-SCALE SURVEY OF ADVERSE EVENTS EXPERIENCED IN YOGA CLASSES. BACKGROUND: YOGA IS A REPRESENTATIVE MIND-BODY THERAPY OF COMPLEMENTARY AND ALTERNATIVE MEDICINE. IN JAPAN, YOGA IS PRACTICED WIDELY TO PROMOTE HEALTH, BUT YOGA-ASSOCIATED ADVERSE EVENTS HAVE ALSO BEEN REPORTED. TO DATE, THE FREQUENCIES AND CHARACTERISTICS OF YOGA-RELATED ADVERSE EVENTS HAVE NOT BEEN ELUCIDATED. THIS STUDY WAS CONDUCTED TO ELUCIDATE THE FREQUENCIES AND CHARACTERISTICS OF ADVERSE EVENTS OF YOGA PERFORMED IN CLASSES AND THE RISK FACTORS OF SUCH EVENTS. METHODS: THE SUBJECTS WERE 2508 PEOPLE TAKING YOGA CLASSES AND 271 YOGA THERAPISTS CONDUCTING THE CLASSES. A SURVEY FOR YOGA CLASS ATTENDEES WAS PERFORMED ON ADVERSE EVENTS THAT OCCURRED DURING A YOGA CLASS ON THE SURVEY DAY. A SURVEY FOR YOGA THERAPISTS WAS PERFORMED ON ADVERSE EVENTS THAT THE THERAPISTS HAD OBSERVED IN THEIR STUDENTS TO DATE. ADVERSE EVENTS WERE DEFINED AS "UNDESIRABLE SYMPTOMS OR RESPONSES THAT OCCURRED DURING A YOGA CLASS". RESULTS: AMONG 2508 YOGA CLASS ATTENDEES, 1343 (53.5%) HAD CHRONIC DISEASES AND 1063 (42.3%) WERE RECEIVING MEDICATION AT HOSPITALS. THERE WERE 687 CLASS ATTENDEES (27.8%) WHO REPORTED SOME TYPE OF UNDESIRABLE SYMPTOMS AFTER TAKING A YOGA CLASS. MUSCULOSKELETAL SYMPTOMS SUCH AS MYALGIA WERE THE MOST COMMON SYMPTOMS, INVOLVING 297 CASES, FOLLOWED BY NEUROLOGICAL SYMPTOMS AND RESPIRATORY SYMPTOMS. MOST ADVERSE EVENTS (63.8%) WERE MILD AND DID NOT INTERFERE WITH CLASS PARTICIPATION. THE RISK FACTORS FOR ADVERSE EVENTS WERE EXAMINED, AND THE ODDS RATIOS FOR ADVERSE EVENTS WERE SIGNIFICANTLY HIGHER IN ATTENDEES WITH CHRONIC DISEASE, POOR PHYSICAL CONDITION ON THE SURVEY DAY, OR A FEELING THAT THE CLASS WAS PHYSICALLY AND MENTALLY STRESSFUL. IN PARTICULAR, THE OCCURRENCE OF SEVERE ADVERSE EVENTS THAT INTERFERED WITH SUBSEQUENT YOGA PRACTICE WAS HIGH AMONG ELDERLY PARTICIPANTS (70 YEARS OR OLDER) AND THOSE WITH CHRONIC MUSCULOSKELETAL DISEASES. CONCLUSIONS: THE RESULTS OF THIS LARGE-SCALE SURVEY DEMONSTRATED THAT APPROXIMATELY 30% OF YOGA CLASS ATTENDEES HAD EXPERIENCED SOME TYPE OF ADVERSE EVENT. ALTHOUGH THE MAJORITY HAD MILD SYMPTOMS, THE SURVEY RESULTS INDICATED THAT ATTENDEES WITH CHRONIC DISEASES WERE MORE LIKELY TO EXPERIENCE ADVERSE EVENTS ASSOCIATED WITH THEIR DISEASE. THEREFORE, SPECIAL ATTENTION IS NECESSARY WHEN YOGA IS INTRODUCED TO PATIENTS WITH STRESS-RELATED, CHRONIC DISEASES. 2015 7 237 24 A SYSTEMATIC SCOPING REVIEW OF YOGA INTERVENTION COMPONENTS AND STUDY QUALITY. CONTEXT: THE SCIENTIFIC STUDY OF YOGA REQUIRES RIGOROUS METHODOLOGY. THIS REVIEW AIMED TO SYSTEMATICALLY ASSESS ALL STUDIES OF YOGA INTERVENTIONS TO (1) DETERMINE YOGA INTERVENTION CHARACTERISTICS; (2) EXAMINE METHODOLOGIC QUALITY OF THE SUBSET OF RCTS; AND (3) EXPLORE HOW WELL THESE INTERVENTIONS ARE REPORTED. EVIDENCE ACQUISITION: SEARCHES WERE CONDUCTED THROUGH APRIL 2012 IN PUBMED, PSYCINFO, AGELINE, AND OVID'S ALTERNATIVE AND COMPLEMENTARY MEDICINE DATABASE USING THE TEXT TERM YOGA, AND THROUGH HANDSEARCHING FIVE JOURNALS. ORIGINAL STUDIES WERE INCLUDED IF THE INTERVENTION (1) CONSISTED OF AT LEAST ONE YOGA SESSION WITH SOME TYPE OF HEALTH ASSESSMENT; (2) TARGETED ADULTS AGED >/=18 YEARS; (3) WAS PUBLISHED IN AN ENGLISH-LANGUAGE PEER-REVIEWED JOURNAL; AND (4) WAS AVAILABLE FOR REVIEW. EVIDENCE SYNTHESIS: OF 3,062 STUDIES IDENTIFIED, 465 STUDIES IN 30 COUNTRIES WERE INCLUDED. ANALYSES WERE CONDUCTED THROUGH 2013. MOST INTERVENTIONS TOOK PLACE IN INDIA (N=228) OR THE U.S. (N=124), WITH INTENSITY RANGING FROM A SINGLE YOGA SESSION UP TO TWO SESSIONS PER DAY. INTERVENTION LENGTHS RANGED FROM ONE SESSION TO 2 YEARS. ASANAS (POSES) WERE MENTIONED AS YOGA COMPONENTS IN 369 (79%) INTERVENTIONS, BUT WERE EITHER MINIMALLY OR NOT AT ALL DESCRIBED IN 200 (54%) OF THESE. MOST INTERVENTIONS (74%, N=336) DID NOT INCLUDE HOME PRACTICE. OF THE INCLUDED STUDIES, 151 WERE RCTS. RCT QUALITY WAS RATED AS POOR. CONCLUSIONS: THIS REVIEW HIGHLIGHTS THE INADEQUATE REPORTING AND METHODOLOGIC LIMITATIONS OF CURRENT YOGA INTERVENTION RESEARCH, WHICH LIMITS STUDY INTERPRETATION AND COMPARABILITY. RECOMMENDATIONS FOR FUTURE METHODOLOGY AND REPORTING ARE DISCUSSED. 2014 8 1807 29 PREVALENCE, PATTERNS, AND PREDICTORS OF YOGA USE: RESULTS OF A U.S. NATIONALLY REPRESENTATIVE SURVEY. INTRODUCTION: THE PURPOSE OF THIS STUDY WAS TO INVESTIGATE THE PREVALENCE, PATTERNS, AND PREDICTORS OF YOGA USE IN THE U.S. GENERAL POPULATION. METHODS: USING CROSS-SECTIONAL DATA FROM THE 2012 NATIONAL HEALTH INTERVIEW SURVEY FAMILY CORE, SAMPLE ADULT CORE, AND ADULT COMPLEMENTARY AND ALTERNATIVE MEDICINE QUESTIONNAIRES (N=34,525), WEIGHTED FREQUENCIES FOR LIFETIME AND 12-MONTH PREVALENCE OF YOGA USE AND PATTERNS OF YOGA PRACTICE WERE ANALYZED. USING LOGISTIC REGRESSION ANALYSES, SOCIODEMOGRAPHIC PREDICTORS OF LIFETIME YOGA USE WERE ANALYZED. ANALYSES WERE CONDUCTED IN 2015. RESULTS: LIFETIME AND 12-MONTH PREVALENCE OF YOGA USE WERE 13.2% AND 8.9%, RESPECTIVELY. COMPARED WITH NONPRACTITIONERS, LIFETIME YOGA PRACTITIONERS WERE MORE LIKELY FEMALE, YOUNGER, NON-HISPANIC WHITE, COLLEGE EDUCATED, HIGHER EARNERS, LIVING IN THE WEST, AND OF BETTER HEALTH STATUS. AMONG THOSE WHO HAD PRACTICED IN THE PAST 12 MONTHS, 51.2% ATTENDED YOGA CLASSES, 89.9% USED BREATHING EXERCISES, AND 54.9% USED MEDITATION. YOGA WAS PRACTICED FOR GENERAL WELLNESS OR DISEASE PREVENTION (78.4%), TO IMPROVE ENERGY (66.1%), OR TO IMPROVE IMMUNE FUNCTION (49.7%). BACK PAIN (19.7%), STRESS (6.4%), AND ARTHRITIS (6.4%) WERE THE MAIN SPECIFIC HEALTH PROBLEMS FOR WHICH PEOPLE PRACTICED YOGA. CONCLUSIONS: ABOUT 31 MILLION U.S. ADULTS HAVE EVER USED YOGA, AND ABOUT 21 MILLION PRACTICED YOGA IN THE PAST 12 MONTHS. DISEASE PREVENTION AND BACK PAIN RELIEF WERE THE MOST IMPORTANT HEALTH REASONS FOR YOGA PRACTICE. YOGA PRACTICE IS ASSOCIATED WITH AGE, GENDER, ETHNICITY, SES, AND HEALTH STATUS. 2016 9 337 41 ARE INDIAN YOGA TRIALS MORE LIKELY TO BE POSITIVE THAN THOSE FROM OTHER COUNTRIES? A SYSTEMATIC REVIEW OF RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED TRIALS. OBJECTIVE: TO DETERMINE WHETHER THE CONCLUSIONS OF RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED TRIALS (RCTS) OF YOGA ARE MORE LIKELY TO BE POSITIVE WHEN THEY WERE CONDUCTED IN INDIA AND/OR WHEN THEY ARE PUBLISHED IN COMPLEMENTARY AND ALTERNATIVE MEDICINE (CAM) SPECIALTY JOURNALS. METHODS: MEDLINE/PUBMED, SCOPUS, THE COCHRANE LIBRARY, INDMED, AND THE TABLES OF CONTENT OF YOGA SPECIALTY JOURNALS NOT LISTED IN MEDICAL DATABASES WERE SCREENED THROUGH FEBRUARY 2014 FOR RCTS COMPARING YOGA INTERVENTIONS TO NON-YOGA INTERVENTIONS. THE RCTS' CONCLUSIONS WERE CLASSIFIED AS POSITIVE (YOGA IS HELPFUL FOR A RESPECTIVE CONDITION) OR NOT POSITIVE; AND COMPARED BETWEEN RCTS THAT WERE A) CONDUCTED IN INDIA VS. OUTSIDE INDIA, AND B) PUBLISHED IN A CAM SPECIALTY JOURNAL OR ANOTHER TYPE OF JOURNAL. RESULTS: A TOTAL OF 306 RCTS WERE INCLUDED; 131 FROM INDIA AND 175 FROM OTHER COUNTRIES; AND 84 FROM CAM SPECIALTY JOURNALS AND 222 FROM OTHER TYPES OF JOURNALS. POSITIVE CONCLUSIONS WERE REACHED IN 277 RCTS (91%); WITH MORE POSITIVE RCTS BEING CONDUCTED IN INDIA THAN ELSEWHERE (ODDS RATIO=24.8; 95% CONFIDENCE INTERVAL=3.3, 184.5; P<0.001) WHILE TYPE OF JOURNAL WAS NOT ASSOCIATED WITH THE DIRECTION OF THE CONCLUSIONS (ODDS RATIO=1.2; 95% CONFIDENCE INTERVAL=0.5, 2.9; P=0.828). CONCLUSIONS: RCTS ON YOGA THAT ARE CONDUCTED IN INDIA HAVE ABOUT 25 TIMES THE ODDS OF REACHING POSITIVE CONCLUSIONS AS THOSE CONDUCTED ELSEWHERE. INDIAN TRIALS SHOULD BE DEALT WITH CAREFULLY WHEN EVALUATING THE HELPFULNESS OF YOGA FOR PATIENTS IN OTHER COUNTRIES AND VICE VERSA. 2015 10 1805 24 PREVALENCE OF TYPE 2 DIABETES AMONG YOGA PRACTITIONERS: A PILOT CROSS-SECTIONAL STUDY IN TWO DISTRICTS IN INDIA. INTRODUCTION: DIABETES IS ONE OF THE MAJOR HEALTH DISEASES IN THE WORLD TODAY. THE EFFICACY OF YOGA IN THE MANAGEMENT OF TYPE 2 DIABETES IS WELL-ESTABLISHED. THE AIM OF THIS STUDY WAS TO ASSESS THE PREVALENCE OF TYPE 2 DIABETES AMONG YOGA PRACTITIONERS IN TWO DISTRICTS OF INDIA (ONE EACH IN WEST AND SOUTH OF INDIA). METHODOLOGY: IN THIS CROSS-SECTIONAL FIELD STUDY, 155 YOGA PRACTITIONERS FROM PUNE AND 192 FROM ERNAKULAM DISTRICTS WERE ASSESSED USING THE DIABETES RISK TEST AND FASTING BLOOD SUGAR. THE DATA COLLECTED WERE ENTERED IN A STATISTICS SOFTWARE PACKAGE AND ANALYZED USING THE PEARSON'S CORRELATION ANALYSIS, T-TEST, UNIVARIATE ANOVA, AND LINEAR REGRESSION TO UNDERSTAND THE PREDICTORS OF RISK FOR DIABETES. RESULTS: THE OVERALL PREVALENCE OF DIABETES AMONG YOGA PRACTITIONERS IN CENTRAL PUNE WAS 3.6% (95% CONFIDENCE INTERVAL [CI]: [0.01-0.04]). 18.9% OF PARTICIPANTS (95% CI: [0.16-0.19]) WERE DIAGNOSED TO BE "AT RISK" FOR DIABETES. IN ERNAKULAM, THE OVERALL PREVALENCE OF DIABETES AMONG PRACTITIONERS WAS 26% (95% CI: [0.05-0.06]) WITH 12% OF PRACTITIONERS (95% CI: [0.05-0.06]) DIAGNOSED TO BE "AT RISK" FOR DIABETES (PREDIABETIC). HIGHER AGE AND LESSER DURATION OF YOGA PRACTICE WERE SIGNIFICANT PREDICTORS OF DIABETES. CONCLUSION: IT IS ESSENTIAL FOR EVERY PERSON ABOVE THE AGE OF 40 TO UNDERGO REGULAR HEALTH CHECK-UPS AND SCREENING FOR DIABETES AND INVOLVE ONESELF IN LIFESTYLE MODIFICATION PROGRAMS SUCH AS YOGA FOR SIGNIFICANTLY LONG DURATION OF TIME ON A DAILY BASIS, TO BETTER MANAGE DIABETES. 2015 11 1058 37 EFFECTS OF YOGA ON EATING DISORDERS-A SYSTEMATIC REVIEW. BACKGROUND: THE QUESTION OF WHETHER YOGA PRACTICE AMELIORATES OR EVEN AGGRAVATES EATING DISORDERS IS CURRENTLY UNDER DEBATE. THE AIM OF THIS REVIEW WAS TO SYSTEMATICALLY ASSESS AND THE EFFECTIVENESS AND SAFETY OF YOGA IN PATIENTS WITH EATING DISORDERS. METHODS: MEDLINE/PUBMED, PSYCINFO, AND THE PSYCHOLOGICAL AND BEHAVIORAL SCIENCE COLLECTION WERE SCREENED THROUGH JULY 2018 FOR RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED TRIALS, NON-RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED TRIALS AND LONGITUDINAL OBSERVATIONAL STUDIES ON YOGA FOR PATIENTS WITH EATING DISORDERS AND OTHER INDIVIDUALS WITH DISORDERED EATING AND/OR BODY DISSATISFACTION. RISK OF BIAS WAS ASSESSED USING THE COCHRANE RISK OF BIAS TOOL AND THE NEWCASTLE-OTTAWA QUALITY ASSESSMENT SCALE. RESULTS: EIGHT RANDOMIZED TRIALS AND FOUR UNCONTROLLED TRIALS INVOLVING A TOTAL OF 495 PARTICIPANTS WERE INCLUDED. RISK OF BIAS WAS MIXED. COMPARING YOGA TO UNTREATED CONTROL GROUPS, EFFECT SIZES RANGED FROM NEGLIGIBLE EFFECTS OF D=0.02 TO VERY LARGE EFFECTS OF D=2.15. HOWEVER, MOST EFFECTS WERE SMALL TO MODERATELY SIZED AND IN MOST CASES NOT SIGNIFICANT. NO SAFETY-RELATED DATA WERE REPORTED. CONCLUSIONS: THERE IS LIMITED EVIDENCE ON THE EFFECTIVENESS AND SAFETY OF YOGA IN PATIENTS WITH EATING DISORDERS. YOGA CAN BE PRELIMINARILY CONSIDERED AS AN ADDITIONAL TREATMENT OPTION IN MULTIMODAL PSYCHIATRIC TREATMENT PROGRAMS. 2019 12 328 25 ANTIHYPERTENSIVE EFFECTS OF YOGA IN A GENERAL PATIENT POPULATION: REAL-WORLD EVIDENCE FROM ELECTRONIC HEALTH RECORDS, A RETROSPECTIVE CASE-CONTROL STUDY. BACKGROUND: DESPITE DECADES OF RESEARCH AND ESTABLISHED TREATMENT STRATEGIES, HYPERTENSION REMAINS A PREVALENT AND INTRACTABLE PROBLEM AT THE POPULATION LEVEL. YOGA, A LIFESTYLE-BASED PRACTICE, HAS DEMONSTRATED ANTIHYPERTENSIVE EFFECTS IN CLINICAL TRIAL SETTINGS, BUT LITTLE IS KNOWN ABOUT ITS EFFECTIVENESS IN THE REAL WORLD. HERE, WE USE ELECTRONIC HEALTH RECORDS TO INVESTIGATE THE ANTIHYPERTENSIVE EFFECTS OF YOGA AS USED BY PATIENTS IN THEIR DAILY LIVES. METHODS: A RETROSPECTIVE, OBSERVATIONAL CASE-CONTROL STUDY OF 1815 RECORDS AMONG 1355 YOGA EXPOSED PATIENTS AND 40,326 RECORDS AMONG 8682 YOGA NON-EXPOSED PATIENTS COLLECTED BETWEEN 2006 AND 2016 FROM A REGIONAL ACADEMIC HEALTH SYSTEM. LINEAR MIXED-EFFECTS MODELS WERE USED TO ESTIMATE THE AVERAGE TREATMENT EFFECT OF YOGA ON SYSTOLIC AND DIASTOLIC BLOOD PRESSURES. MIXED EFFECTS LOGISTIC REGRESSION MODELS WERE USED TO CALCULATE ODDS RATIOS FOR YOGA USE AND FOUR BLOOD PRESSURE CATEGORIES: NORMAL, ELEVATED, STAGE I, AND STAGE II HYPERTENSION. RESULTS: YOGA PATIENTS ARE PREDOMINANTLY WHITE (88.0%) AND FEMALE (87.8%) WITH MEDIAN AGE 46 YEARS (IQR 32-57) WHO USE YOGA ONE TIME PER WEEK (62.3%). YOGA IS ASSOCIATED WITH LOWER SYSTOLIC (- 2.8 MMHG, STANDARD ERROR 0.6; P < .001) AND DIASTOLIC (- 1.5 MMHG, STANDARD ERROR 0.5; P = 0.001) BLOOD PRESSURES. PATIENTS USING YOGA HAVE 85% INCREASED ODDS (OR 1.85, 95% CI 1.39-2.46) OF HAVING NORMAL BLOOD PRESSURE RELATIVE TO YOGA NON-EXPOSED PATIENTS. PATIENTS AGED 40-59 YEARS HAVE 67% DECREASED ODDS (0.33, 95% CI 0.14-0.75) OF HAVING STAGE II HYPERTENSION. ALL EFFECT SIZES ARE AGE-DEPENDENT. CONCLUSIONS: YOGA, AS USED BY PATIENTS IN THEIR DAILY LIVES, MAY BE AN EFFECTIVE STRATEGY FOR BLOOD PRESSURE CONTROL AND THE PREVENTION OF HYPERTENSION AT THE POPULATION LEVEL. 2022 13 2566 33 YOGA FOR DEPRESSION AND ANXIETY SYMPTOMS IN PEOPLE WITH CANCER: A SYSTEMATIC REVIEW AND META-ANALYSIS. OBJECTIVE: CANCER AND ITS TREATMENT CAN LEAD TO A VARIETY OF PHYSICAL AND EMOTIONAL CONCERNS IMPACTING ON THOSE AFFECTED, INCLUDING SUBCLINICAL OR CLINICAL DEPRESSION AND ANXIETY, WHICH IN TURN HAVE A SIGNIFICANT IMPACT ON WELLBEING, QUALITY OF LIFE AND SURVIVAL. THE AIM OF THIS REVIEW WAS TO EVALUATE THE EFFECT OF YOGA-BASED INTERVENTIONS ON SELF-REPORTED DEPRESSION AND ANXIETY SYMPTOMS IN PEOPLE WITH CANCER IN RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED TRIALS. METHOD: SIX DATABASES WERE SEARCHED TO IDENTIFY RELEVANT STUDIES. SYSTEMATIC REVIEW PROCEDURES WERE FOLLOWED INCLUDING A QUALITY ASSESSMENT. META-ANALYSIS OF SUITABLE STUDIES WAS CONDUCTED. RESULTS: 26 STUDIES FROM OUR SEARCH CRITERIA WERE ELIGIBLE FOR INCLUSION FOR DEPRESSIVE AND 16 FOR ANXIETY SYMPTOMS. META-ANALYSES REVEALED EVIDENCE FOR SIGNIFICANT MEDIUM EFFECTS OF YOGA ON DEPRESSION SYMPTOMS (N = 1,486, G = -0.419, 95% CONFIDENCE INTERVAL [CI] = -0.558 TO -0.281, P < 0.001) AND ANXIETY (N = 977, G = -0.347, 95% CI = -0.473 TO -0.221, P < 0.001) COMPARED TO CONTROLS. SUBGROUP ANALYSES FOR DEPRESSIVE SYMPTOMS REVEALED SIGNIFICANT EFFECTS FOR ALL ANALYSES PERFORMED (TYPE OF CANCER, TYPE OF CONTROL, TREATMENT STATUS, DURATION OF INTERVENTION OR FREQUENCY OF YOGA SESSIONS), WITH EFFECT SIZES BEING COMPARABLE BETWEEN SUBGROUPS. SIMILAR FINDINGS WERE FOUND FOR ANXIETY SYMPTOMS EXCEPT FOR TREATMENT STATUS, WHERE THE ONLY SIGNIFICANT EFFECT WAS FOUND WHEN YOGA WAS DELIVERED DURING ACTIVE TREATMENT. CONCLUSIONS: THIS REVIEW PROVIDES EVIDENCE THAT IN PEOPLE WITH CANCER, YOGA-BASED INTERVENTIONS ARE ASSOCIATED WITH AMELIORATION OF DEPRESSION AND ANXIETY SYMPTOMS AND THEREFORE A PROMISING THERAPEUTIC MODALITY FOR THEIR MANAGEMENT. HOWEVER, THE POTENTIAL FOR RISK OF BIAS TOGETHER WITH CONTROL GROUP DESIGN CHALLENGES MEANS THE RESULTS SHOULD BE INTERPRETED WITH CAUTION. 2021 14 292 35 ADVERSE EVENTS ASSOCIATED WITH YOGA: A SYSTEMATIC REVIEW OF PUBLISHED CASE REPORTS AND CASE SERIES. WHILE YOGA IS GAINING INCREASED POPULARITY IN NORTH AMERICA AND EUROPE, ITS SAFETY HAS BEEN QUESTIONED IN THE LAY PRESS. THE AIM OF THIS SYSTEMATIC REVIEW WAS TO ASSESS PUBLISHED CASE REPORTS AND CASE SERIES ON ADVERSE EVENTS ASSOCIATED WITH YOGA. MEDLINE/PUBMED, SCOPUS, CAMBASE, INDMED AND THE CASES DATABASE WERE SCREENED THROUGH FEBRUARY 2013; AND 35 CASE REPORTS AND 2 CASE SERIES REPORTING A TOTAL OF 76 CASES WERE INCLUDED. TEN CASES HAD MEDICAL PRECONDITIONS, MAINLY GLAUCOMA AND OSTEOPENIA. PRANAYAMA, HATHA YOGA, AND BIKRAM YOGA WERE THE MOST COMMON YOGA PRACTICES; HEADSTAND, SHOULDER STAND, LOTUS POSITION, AND FORCEFUL BREATHING WERE THE MOST COMMON YOGA POSTURES AND BREATHING TECHNIQUES CITED. TWENTY-SEVEN ADVERSE EVENTS (35.5%) AFFECTED THE MUSCULOSKELETAL SYSTEM; 14 (18.4%) THE NERVOUS SYSTEM; AND 9 (11.8%) THE EYES. FIFTEEN CASES (19.7%) REACHED FULL RECOVERY; 9 CASES (11.3%) PARTIAL RECOVERY; 1 CASE (1.3%) NO RECOVERY; AND 1 CASE (1.3%) DIED. AS ANY OTHER PHYSICAL OR MENTAL PRACTICE, YOGA SHOULD BE PRACTICED CAREFULLY UNDER THE GUIDANCE OF A QUALIFIED INSTRUCTOR. BEGINNERS SHOULD AVOID EXTREME PRACTICES SUCH AS HEADSTAND, LOTUS POSITION AND FORCEFUL BREATHING. INDIVIDUALS WITH MEDICAL PRECONDITIONS SHOULD WORK WITH THEIR PHYSICIAN AND YOGA TEACHER TO APPROPRIATELY ADAPT POSTURES; PATIENTS WITH GLAUCOMA SHOULD AVOID INVERSIONS AND PATIENTS WITH COMPROMISED BONE SHOULD AVOID FORCEFUL YOGA PRACTICES. 2013 15 2539 21 YOGA FOR ADULTS WITH TYPE 2 DIABETES: A SYSTEMATIC REVIEW OF CONTROLLED TRIALS. A GROWING BODY OF EVIDENCE SUGGESTS YOGIC PRACTICES MAY BENEFIT ADULTS WITH TYPE 2 DIABETES (DM2). IN THIS SYSTEMATIC REVIEW, WE EVALUATE AVAILABLE EVIDENCE FROM PROSPECTIVE CONTROLLED TRIALS REGARDING THE EFFECTS OF YOGA-BASED PROGRAMS ON SPECIFIC HEALTH OUTCOMES PERTINENT TO DM2 MANAGEMENT. TO IDENTIFY QUALIFYING STUDIES, WE SEARCHED NINE DATABASES AND SCANNED BIBLIOGRAPHIES OF RELEVANT REVIEW PAPERS AND ALL IDENTIFIED ARTICLES. CONTROLLED TRIALS THAT DID NOT TARGET ADULTS WITH DIABETES, INCLUDED ONLY ADULTS WITH TYPE 1 DIABETES, WERE UNDER TWO-WEEK DURATION, OR DID NOT INCLUDE QUANTITATIVE OUTCOME DATA WERE EXCLUDED. STUDY QUALITY WAS EVALUATED USING THE PEDRO SCALE. THIRTY-THREE PAPERS REPORTING FINDINGS FROM 25 CONTROLLED TRIALS (13 NONRANDOMIZED, 12 RANDOMIZED) MET OUR INCLUSION CRITERIA (N = 2170 PARTICIPANTS). COLLECTIVELY, FINDINGS SUGGEST THAT YOGIC PRACTICES MAY PROMOTE SIGNIFICANT IMPROVEMENTS IN SEVERAL INDICES OF IMPORTANCE IN DM2 MANAGEMENT, INCLUDING GLYCEMIC CONTROL, LIPID LEVELS, AND BODY COMPOSITION. MORE LIMITED DATA SUGGEST THAT YOGA MAY ALSO LOWER OXIDATIVE STRESS AND BLOOD PRESSURE; ENHANCE PULMONARY AND AUTONOMIC FUNCTION, MOOD, SLEEP, AND QUALITY OF LIFE; AND REDUCE MEDICATION USE IN ADULTS WITH DM2. HOWEVER, GIVEN THE METHODOLOGICAL LIMITATIONS OF EXISTING STUDIES, ADDITIONAL HIGH-QUALITY INVESTIGATIONS ARE REQUIRED TO CONFIRM AND FURTHER ELUCIDATE THE POTENTIAL BENEFITS OF YOGA PROGRAMS IN POPULATIONS WITH DM2. 2016 16 219 27 A SYSTEMATIC REVIEW AND META-ANALYSIS OF MINDFULNESS BASED INTERVENTIONS AND YOGA IN INFLAMMATORY BOWEL DISEASE. BACKGROUND: MINDFULNESS INTERVENTIONS ARE INCREASINGLY USED AS A PART OF INTEGRATED TREATMENT IN INFLAMMATORY BOWEL DISEASE (IBD) BUT THERE ARE LIMITED DATA AND A LACK OF CONSENSUS REGARDING EFFECTIVENESS. OBJECTIVES: WE EXPLORED THE EFFICACY OF MINDFULNESS INTERVENTIONS COMPARED TO TREATMENT AS USUAL (TAU), OR OTHER PSYCHOTHERAPEUTIC INTERVENTIONS, IN TREATING PHYSICAL AND PSYCHOSOCIAL SYMPTOMS ASSOCIATED WITH IBD. METHODS: WE CONDUCTED A SYSTEMATIC REVIEW AND META-ANALYSIS OF RELEVANT RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED TRIALS (RCTS). WE INCLUDED A BROAD RANGE OF MINDFULNESS INTERVENTIONS INCLUDING MINDFULNESS-BASED INTERVENTIONS AND YOGA, WITH NO RESTRICTIONS ON DATE OF PUBLICATION, PARTICIPANTS' AGE, LANGUAGE OR PUBLICATION TYPE. WE SEARCHED THE FOLLOWING ELECTRONIC DATABASES: MEDLINE, EMBASE, PSYCINFO, CINAHL AND WHO ICTRP DATABASE. WE ADHERED TO THE PREFERRED REPORTING ITEMS FOR SYSTEMATIC REVIEWS AND META-ANALYSIS (PRISMA) GUIDELINES IN CONDUCTING THE REVIEW. RESULTS: WE INCLUDED EIGHT STUDIES IN THE META-ANALYSIS. MINDFULNESS INTERVENTIONS SHOWED A STATISTICALLY SIGNIFICANT EFFECT ON STRESS IN BOTH THE SHORT(SMD=-0.48; 95%CI:-0.97, 0.00; P=.05), AND LONG TERM(SMD=-0.55; 95%CI:-0.78, -0.32; P<.00001), SIGNIFICANT LONG TERM EFFECTS ON DEPRESSION (SMD=-0.36; 95%CI:-0.66, -0.07; P=.02) AND QUALITY OF LIFE (SMD=0.38; 95%CI:0.08, 0.68; P=.01),AND SMALL BUT NOT STATISTICALLY SIGNIFICANT IMPROVEMENTS IN ANXIETY (SMD=-0.27; 95%CI:-0.65, 0.11; P=.16).EFFECTS ON PHYSICAL OUTCOMES WERE EQUIVOCAL AND NOT STATISTICALLY SIGNIFICANT. CONCLUSIONS: MINDFULNESS INTERVENTIONS ARE EFFECTIVE IN REDUCING STRESS AND DEPRESSION AND IMPROVING QUALITY OF LIFE AND ANXIETY, BUT DO NOT LEAD TO SIGNIFICANT IMPROVEMENTS IN THE PHYSICAL SYMPTOMS OF IBD. FURTHER RESEARCH INVOLVING IBD-TAILORED INTERVENTIONS AND MORE RIGOROUSLY DESIGNED TRIALS IS WARRANTED. 2019 17 386 26 BENEFITS AND ADVERSE EFFECTS ASSOCIATED WITH YOGA PRACTICE: A CROSS-SECTIONAL SURVEY FROM INDIA. OBJECTIVE: BENEFITS AND ADVERSE EFFECTS OF YOGA WERE REPORTED IN SURVEYS FROM DIFFERENT COUNTRIES. THE PRESENT STUDY AIMED TO (I) DETERMINE THE BENEFITS AND ADVERSE EFFECTS OF YOGA IN YOGA EXPERIENCED PERSONS IN INDIA AND (II) CORRELATE THESE EFFECTS OF YOGA WITH FACTORS RELATED TO THE INDIVIDUAL AND THEIR YOGA PRACTICE. DESIGN AND SETTING: THIS CONVENIENCE SAMPLING IN-PERSON SURVEY REPORTS BENEFITS AND ADVERSE EFFECTS OF YOGA IN 3135 YOGA EXPERIENCED PERSONS. RESULTS: THE BENEFITS OF YOGA WERE REPORTED BY 94.5 PERCENT OF THE RESPONDENTS. THE THREE MOST COMMON BENEFITS WERE IMPROVEMENT IN: (I) PHYSICAL FITNESS, (II) MENTAL STATE AND (III) COGNITIVE FUNCTIONS. AN ADVERSE EFFECT OF YOGA WAS REPORTED BY 1.9 PERCENT OF THE RESPONDENTS. THE THREE MOST COMMON ADVERSE EFFECTS REPORTED WERE: (I) SORENESS AND PAIN, (II) MUSCLE INJURIES AND (III) FATIGUE. THE FOLLOWING FACTORS SHOWED A SIGNIFICANT ASSOCIATION (IN ALL CASES P < 0.05 CHI SQUARE TEST; CRAMER'S V > 0.10) WITH REPORTED BENEFITS OF YOGA: (I) EXPERIENCE OF YOGA IN MONTHS, (II) TIME SPENT PRACTICING YOGA IN A WEEK, (III) NUMBER OF YOGA TECHNIQUES PRACTICED, AND (IV) WHETHER AWARENESS WAS MAINTAINED DURING THE YOGA PRACTICE OR NOT. CONCLUSION: BENEFITS OF YOGA PRACTICE TO PHYSICAL HEALTH WERE THE MOST COMMON, WITH SORENESS AND PAIN THE MOST COMMON ADVERSE EFFECT OF YOGA. YOGA PRACTICE RELATED FACTORS INFLUENCE THE BENEFITS OF YOGA. 2021 18 2161 30 THE EFFECTS OF YOGA AMONG ADULTS WITH TYPE 2 DIABETES: A SYSTEMATIC REVIEW AND META-ANALYSIS. THE PURPOSE OF THIS META-ANALYSIS WAS TO EXAMINE THE EFFECTS OF YOGA FOR GLYCEMIC CONTROL AMONG ADULTS WITH TYPE 2 DIABETES (T2DM). COMPREHENSIVE ELECTRONIC DATABASES SEARCHES LOCATED 2559 UNIQUE STUDIES WITH RELEVANT KEY TERMS. STUDIES WERE INCLUDED IF THEY (1) EVALUATED A YOGA INTERVENTION TO PROMOTE T2DM MANAGEMENT, (2) USED A COMPARISON GROUP, (3) REPORTED AN OBJECTIVE MEASURE OF GLYCEMIC CONTROL AT POST-INTERVENTION, AND (4) HAD FOLLOW-UP LENGTH OR POST-TEST OF AT LEAST 8WEEKS FROM BASELINE. INDEPENDENT RATERS CODED PARTICIPANT, DESIGN AND METHODOLOGICAL CHARACTERISTICS AND INTERVENTION CONTENT. SUMMARY EFFECT SIZES AND 95% CONFIDENCE INTERVALS (CI) WERE CALCULATED. TWENTY-THREE STUDIES WITH 2473 PARTICIPANTS (MEAN AGE=53YEARS; 43% WOMEN) MET ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA. COMPARED WITH CONTROLS, YOGA PARTICIPANTS WERE SUCCESSFUL IN IMPROVING THEIR HBA1C (D+=0.36, 95% CI=0.16, 0.56; K=16), FBG (D+=0.58, 95% CI=0.40, 0.76; K=20), AND PPBG (D+=0.40, 95% CI=0.23, 0.56; K=14). YOGA WAS ALSO ASSOCIATED WITH SIGNIFICANT IMPROVEMENTS IN LIPID PROFILE, BLOOD PRESSURE, BODY MASS INDEX, WAIST/HIP RATIO AND CORTISOL LEVELS. OVERALL, STUDIES SATISFIED AN AVERAGE OF 41% OF THE METHODOLOGICAL QUALITY (MQ) CRITERIA; MQ SCORE WAS NOT ASSOCIATED WITH ANY OUTCOME (PS >0.05). YOGA IMPROVED GLYCEMIC OUTCOMES AND OTHER RISK FACTORS FOR COMPLICATIONS IN ADULTS WITH T2DM RELATIVE TO A CONTROL CONDITION. ADDITIONAL STUDIES WITH LONGER FOLLOW-UPS ARE NEEDED TO DETERMINE THE LONG-TERM EFFICACY OF YOGA FOR ADULTS WITH T2DM. 2017 19 223 40 A SYSTEMATIC REVIEW AND META-ANALYSIS ON THE EFFECTS OF YOGA ON WEIGHT-RELATED OUTCOMES. INTRODUCTION: OVERWEIGHT AND OBESITY ARE AMONG THE MOST IMPORTANT MODIFIABLE RISK FACTORS FOR CHRONIC DISEASES AND PREMATURE DEATH. THE AIM OF THIS REVIEW WAS TO SYSTEMATICALLY ASSESS AND ANALYZE THE EFFECTS OF YOGA ON WEIGHT-RELATED OUTCOMES. METHODS: MEDLINE/PUBMED, SCOPUS, AND THE COCHRANE LIBRARY WERE SCREENED THROUGH MARCH 2015 FOR RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED TRIALS ON YOGA FOR WEIGHT-RELATED OUTCOMES IN THE GENERAL POPULATION OR OVERWEIGHT/OBESE INDIVIDUALS. RISK OF BIAS WAS ASSESSED USING THE COCHRANE RISK OF BIAS TOOL ON THE FOLLOWING DOMAINS: SELECTION BIAS, PERFORMANCE BIAS, DETECTION BIAS, ATTRITION BIAS, REPORTING BIAS, AND OTHER BIAS. RESULTS: OUT OF 445 RECORDS IDENTIFIED DURING LITERATURE SEARCH, 30 TRIALS WITH A TOTAL OF 2173 PARTICIPANTS WERE INCLUDED. NO EFFECTS ON WEIGHT, BODY MASS INDEX, BODY FAT PERCENTAGE OR WAIST CIRCUMFERENCE WERE FOUND. IN STUDIES WITH HEALTHY ADULT PARTICIPANTS AN EFFECT OF YOGA COMPARED TO USUAL CARE WAS FOUND REGARDING WAIST/HIP RATIO (SMD=--1.00; 95% CI=--1.44, -0.55; P<0.001). IN STUDIES WITH OVERWEIGHT/OBESE PARTICIPANTS ONLY, EFFECTS RELATIVE TO USUAL CARE WERE FOUND FOR BODY MASS INDEX (SMD=-0.99; 95% CI=-1.67, -0.31; P=0.004). EFFECTS HOWEVER WERE NOT ROBUST AGAINST SELECTION BIAS; AND PUBLICATION BIAS COULD NOT BE RULED OUT. NO INTERVENTION-RELATED ADVERSE EVENTS WERE REPORTED. CONCLUSIONS: DESPITE METHODOLOGICAL DRAWBACKS, YOGA CAN BE PRELIMINARILY CONSIDERED A SAFE AND EFFECTIVE INTERVENTION TO REDUCE BODY MASS INDEX IN OVERWEIGHT OR OBESE INDIVIDUALS. 2016 20 221 37 A SYSTEMATIC REVIEW AND META-ANALYSIS OF YOGA FOR HYPERTENSION. BACKGROUND: THE AIM OF THIS SYSTEMATIC REVIEW AND META-ANALYSIS WAS TO EVALUATE THE QUALITY OF EVIDENCE AND THE STRENGTH OF RECOMMENDATION FOR YOGA AS A THERAPEUTIC MEANS IN THE MANAGEMENT OF PREHYPERTENSION AND HYPERTENSION. METHODS: MEDLINE/PUBMED, SCOPUS, CENTRAL, AND INDMED WERE SCREENED THROUGH FEBRUARY 2014 FOR RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED TRIALS (RCTS) ON THE EFFECTS OF YOGA INTERVENTIONS (>/=8 WEEKS) COMPARED WITH USUAL CARE OR ANY ACTIVE CONTROL INTERVENTION ON BLOOD PRESSURE IN PATIENTS WITH PREHYPERTENSION (120-139/80-89 MM HG) OR HYPERTENSION (>/=140/>/=90 MM HG). RISK OF BIAS WAS ASSESSED USING THE COCHRANE RISK OF BIAS TOOL; QUALITY OF EVIDENCE WAS ASSESSED ACCORDING TO THE GRADE RECOMMENDATIONS. RESULTS: SEVEN RCTS WITH A TOTAL OF 452 PATIENTS WERE INCLUDED. COMPARED WITH USUAL CARE, VERY LOW-QUALITY EVIDENCE WAS FOUND FOR EFFECTS OF YOGA ON SYSTOLIC (6 RCTS, N = 278; MEAN DIFFERENCE (MD) = -9.65 MM HG, 95% CONFIDENCE INTERVAL (CI) = -17.23 TO -2.06, P = 0.01; HETEROGENEITY: I (2) = 90%, CHI(2) = 48.21, P < 0.01) AND DIASTOLIC BLOOD PRESSURE (6 RCTS, N = 278; MD = -7.22 MM HG, 95% CI = -12.83 TO -1.62, P = 0.01; HETEROGENEITY: I (2) = 92%, CHI(2) = 64.84, P < 0.01). SUBGROUP ANALYSES REVEALED EFFECTS FOR RCTS THAT INCLUDED HYPERTENSIVE PATIENTS BUT NOT FOR RCTS THAT INCLUDED BOTH HYPERTENSIVE AND PREHYPERTENSIVE PATIENTS, AS WELL AS FOR RCTS THAT ALLOWED ANTIHYPERTENSIVE COMEDICATION BUT NOT FOR THOSE THAT DID NOT. MORE ADVERSE EVENTS OCCURRED DURING YOGA THAN DURING USUAL CARE. COMPARED WITH EXERCISE, NO EVIDENCE WAS FOUND FOR EFFECTS OF YOGA ON SYSTOLIC OR DIASTOLIC BLOOD PRESSURE. CONCLUSIONS: LARGER STUDIES ARE REQUIRED TO CONFIRM THE EMERGING BUT LOW-QUALITY EVIDENCE THAT YOGA MAY BE A USEFUL ADJUNCT INTERVENTION IN THE MANAGEMENT OF HYPERTENSION. 2014