1 1829 84 PSYCHOLOGICAL EFFECTS OF YOGA NIDRA IN WOMEN WITH MENSTRUAL DISORDERS: A SYSTEMATIC REVIEW OF RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED TRIALS. OBJECTIVE: TO ASSESS THE EFFECTS OF YOGA NIDRA ON PSYCHOLOGICAL PROBLEMS IN WOMEN WITH MENSTRUAL DISORDERS. METHODS: A SEARCH WAS CONDUCTED USING CINAHL, THE COCHRANE LIBRARY, EMBASE, PSYCINFO, AND PUBMED ELECTRONIC DATABASES, AND USING THE PREFERRED REPORTING ITEMS FOR SYSTEMATIC REVIEWS AND META-ANALYSES (PRISMA), TO IDENTIFY RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED TRIALS (RCTS) PUBLISHED IN ANY LANGUAGE UP TO AND INCLUDING JULY 2016, WHICH REPORTED THE PSYCHOLOGICAL EFFECTS OF YOGA NIDRA IN WOMEN WITH MENSTRUAL DISORDERS. RESULTS: TWO POTENTIAL TRIALS WERE IDENTIFIED AND BOTH WERE INCLUDED IN THE REVIEW. A SIGNIFICANT DIFFERENCE WAS OBSERVED BETWEEN EXPERIMENTAL AND CONTROL GROUPS IN THAT ANXIETY AND DEPRESSION WERE SIGNIFICANTLY DECREASED IN THE EXPERIMENTAL GROUP WHEN COMPARED WITH THE CONTROL GROUP. CONCLUSIONS: THERE IS EVIDENCE FROM TWO RCTS THAT YOGA NIDRA MAY HAVE FAVORABLE EFFECTS IN TERMS OF REDUCING PSYCHOLOGICAL PROBLEMS IN WOMEN WITH MENSTRUAL DISORDERS. 2017 2 1031 48 EFFECTS OF YOGA EXERCISES FOR HEADACHES: A SYSTEMATIC REVIEW OF RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED TRIALS. [PURPOSE] TO ASSESS THE EVIDENCE FOR THE EFFECTIVENESS OF YOGA EXERCISES IN THE MANAGEMENT OF HEADACHES. [SUBJECTS AND METHODS] A SEARCH WAS CONDUCTED OF SIX ELECTRONIC DATABASES TO IDENTIFY RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED TRIALS (RCTS) REPORTING THE EFFECTS OF YOGIC INTERVENTION ON HEADACHES PUBLISHED IN ANY LANGUAGE BEFORE JANUARY 2015. QUALITY ASSESSMENT WAS CONDUCTED USING THE COCHRANE RISK OF BIAS TOOL. [RESULTS] ONE POTENTIAL TRIAL WAS IDENTIFIED AND INCLUDED IN THIS REVIEW. THE QUALITY CRITICAL APPRAISAL INDICATED A MODERATE RISK OF BIAS. THE AVAILABLE DATA COULD ONLY BE INCLUDED AS A NARRATIVE DESCRIPTION. HEADACHE INTENSITY AND FREQUENCY, ANXIETY AND DEPRESSION SCORES, AND SYMPTOMATIC MEDICATION USE WERE SIGNIFICANTLY LOWER IN THE YOGA GROUP COMPARED TO THE CONTROL GROUP. [CONCLUSION] THERE IS EVIDENCE FROM ONE RCT THAT YOGA EXERCISES MAY BE BENEFICIAL FOR HEADACHES. HOWEVER, THE FINDINGS SHOULD BE INTERPRETED WITH CAUTION DUE TO THE SMALL NUMBER OF RCTS. THEREFORE, FURTHER RIGOROUS METHODOLOGICAL AND HIGH QUALITY RCTS ARE REQUIRED TO INVESTIGATE THE HYPOTHESIS THAT YOGA EXERCISES ALLEVIATE HEADACHES, AND TO CONFIRM AND FURTHER COMPREHEND THE EFFECTS OF STANDARDIZED YOGA PROGRAMS ON HEADACHES. 2015 3 1055 37 EFFECTS OF YOGA ON CHRONIC NECK PAIN: A SYSTEMATIC REVIEW OF RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED TRIALS. [PURPOSE] THE AIM OF THIS STUDY WAS TO INVESTIGATE THE EFFECTIVENESS OF YOGA IN THE MANAGEMENT OF CHRONIC NECK PAIN. [SUBJECTS AND METHODS] FIVE ELECTRONIC DATABASES WERE SEARCHED TO IDENTIFY RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED TRIALS (RCTS) OF YOGA INTERVENTION ON CHRONIC NECK PAIN. THE TRIALS WERE PUBLISHED IN THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE BETWEEN JANUARY 1966 AND DECEMBER 2015. THE COCHRANE RISK OF BIAS TOOL WAS USED TO ASSESS THE QUALITY OF THE TRIALS. [RESULTS] THREE TRIALS WERE IDENTIFIED AND INCLUDED IN THIS REVIEW. A CRITICAL APPRAISAL WAS PERFORMED ON THE TRIALS, AND THE RESULT INDICATED A HIGH RISK OF BIAS. A NARRATIVE DESCRIPTION WAS PROCESSED BECAUSE OF THE SMALL NUMBER OF RCTS. NECK PAIN INTENSITY AND FUNCTIONAL DISABILITY WERE SIGNIFICANTLY LOWER IN THE YOGA GROUPS THAN IN THE CONTROL GROUPS. [CONCLUSION] EVIDENCE FROM THE 3 RANDOMLY CONTROLLED TRIALS SHOWS THAT YOGA MAY BE BENEFICIAL FOR CHRONIC NECK PAIN. THE LOW-QUALITY RESULT OF THE CRITICAL APPRAISAL AND THE SMALL NUMBER OF TRIALS SUGGEST THAT HIGH-QUALITY RCTS ARE REQUIRED TO EXAMINE FURTHER THE EFFECTS OF YOGA INTERVENTION ON CHRONIC NECK PAIN RELIEF. 2016 4 559 47 COULD YOGA PRACTICE IMPROVE TREATMENT-RELATED SIDE EFFECTS AND QUALITY OF LIFE FOR WOMEN WITH BREAST CANCER? A SYSTEMATIC REVIEW AND META-ANALYSIS. AIM: TO DETERMINE IF YOGA AS A COMPLEMENTARY AND ALTERNATIVE THERAPY WAS ASSOCIATED WITH ENHANCED HEALTH AND TREATMENT-RELATED SIDE EFFECTS IN PATIENTS WITH BREAST CANCER. THIS SYSTEMATIC REVIEW EXAMINES WHETHER YOGA PRACTICE PROVIDES ANY MEASURABLE BENEFIT, BOTH PHYSICALLY AND PSYCHOLOGICALLY, FOR WOMEN WITH BREAST CANCER. METHODS: PUBMED, EMBASE AND THE COCHRANE LIBRARY FOR RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED TRIALS (RCTS) THROUGHOUT JUNE 2013. WE EVALUATED THE QUALITY OF THE INCLUDED STUDIES BY THE COCHRANE HANDBOOK 5.2 STANDARDS AND ANALYZED THE DATA USING THE STATA SOFTWARE, VERSION 10.0. META-REGRESSION AND SUBGROUP ANALYSIS WERE ALSO PERFORMED TO IDENTIFY ADDITIONAL PREDICTORS OF OUTCOME AND TO ASSESS HETEROGENEITY. RESULTS: SIXTEEN RCTS WITH A TOTAL OF 930 PARTICIPANTS WERE INCLUDED. COMPARING YOGA GROUPS TO CONTROL GROUPS, THERE WAS A STATISTICALLY SIGNIFICANT DIFFERENCE IN OVERALL HEALTH-RELATED QUALITY OF LIFE, DEPRESSION, ANXIETY AND GASTROINTESTINAL SYMPTOMS. META-REGRESSION ANALYSES REVEALED THAT THE DURATION OF YOGA PRACTICE AND TYPE OF CONTROL GROUP PARTLY EXPLAINED THE HETEROGENEITY. SUBGROUP ANALYSES REVEALED THAT YOGA HAD A POSITIVE EFFECT ON ANXIETY ONLY WHEN IT HAD BEEN PRACTICED FOR LONGER THAN 3 MONTHS. ONLY THE WAIT-LIST CONTROL GROUP SHOWED AN EFFECT OF YOGA ON PHYSICAL WELL-BEING. CONCLUSION: THE CURRENT EVIDENCE DEMONSTRATES THAT YOGA PRACTICE COULD BE EFFECTIVE IN ENHANCING HEALTH AND MANAGING SOME TREATMENT-RELATED SIDE EFFECTS FOR PATIENTS RECOVERING FROM BREAST CANCER. IN FUTURE CLINICAL STUDIES, CLINICIANS SHOULD CONSIDER THE PATIENT'S WISHES ALONG WITH THE CURRENT BEST EVIDENCE OF THE EFFECTS OF YOGA PRACTICE IN THEIR CLINICAL DECISION-MAKING. 2017 5 1079 33 EFFECTS OF YOGA ON PSYCHOLOGICAL HEALTH, QUALITY OF LIFE, AND PHYSICAL HEALTH OF PATIENTS WITH CANCER: A META-ANALYSIS. YOGA IS ONE OF THE MOST WIDELY USED COMPLEMENTARY AND ALTERNATIVE MEDICINE THERAPIES TO MANAGE ILLNESS. THIS META-ANALYSIS AIMED TO DETERMINE THE EFFECTS OF YOGA ON PSYCHOLOGICAL HEALTH, QUALITY OF LIFE, AND PHYSICAL HEALTH OF PATIENTS WITH CANCER. STUDIES WERE IDENTIFIED THROUGH A SYSTEMATIC SEARCH OF SEVEN ELECTRONIC DATABASES AND WERE SELECTED IF THEY USED A RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED TRIAL DESIGN TO EXAMINE THE EFFECTS OF YOGA IN PATIENTS WITH CANCER. THE QUALITY OF EACH ARTICLE WAS RATED BY TWO OF THE AUTHORS USING THE PEDRO SCALE. TEN ARTICLES WERE SELECTED; THEIR PEDRO SCORES RANGED FROM 4 TO 7. THE YOGA GROUPS COMPARED TO WAITLIST CONTROL GROUPS OR SUPPORTIVE THERAPY GROUPS SHOWED SIGNIFICANTLY GREATER IMPROVEMENTS IN PSYCHOLOGICAL HEALTH: ANXIETY (P = .009), DEPRESSION (P = .002), DISTRESS (P = .003), AND STRESS (P = .006). HOWEVER, DUE TO THE MIXED AND LOW TO FAIR QUALITY AND SMALL NUMBER OF STUDIES CONDUCTED, THE FINDINGS ARE PRELIMINARY AND LIMITED AND SHOULD BE CONFIRMED THROUGH HIGHER-QUALITY, RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED TRIALS. 2011 6 1077 44 EFFECTS OF YOGA ON PSYCHOLOGIC FUNCTION AND QUALITY OF LIFE IN WOMEN WITH BREAST CANCER: A META-ANALYSIS OF RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED TRIALS. OBJECTIVE: THE AIM OF THIS META-ANALYSIS WAS TO EVALUATE THE EFFECTS OF YOGA ON PSYCHOLOGIC FUNCTION AND QUALITY OF LIFE (QOL) IN WOMEN WITH BREAST CANCER. DESIGN: A SYSTEMATIC SEARCH OF PUBMED, EMBASE, THE COCHRANE LIBRARY, THE CHINESE BIOMEDICAL LITERATURE DATABASE, AND THE CHINESE DIGITAL JOURNALS FULL-TEXT DATABASE WAS CARRIED OUT. RANDOMIZED CONTROL TRIALS (RCTS) EXAMINING THE EFFECTS OF YOGA, VERSUS A CONTROL GROUP RECEIVING NO INTERVENTION, ON PSYCHOLOGIC FUNCTIONING AND QOL IN WOMEN WITH BREAST CANCER WERE INCLUDED. METHODOLOGICAL QUALITY OF INCLUDED RCTS WAS ASSESSED ACCORDING TO THE COCHRANE HANDBOOK FOR SYSTEMATIC REVIEWS OF INTERVENTIONS 5.0.1, AND DATA WERE ANALYZED USING THE COCHRANE COLLABORATION'S REVIEW MANAGER 5.1. RESULTS: SIX (6) STUDIES INVOLVING 382 PATIENTS WERE INCLUDED. THE META-ANALYSIS SHOWED THAT YOGA CAN IMPROVE QOL FOR WOMEN WITH BREAST CANCER. A STATISTICALLY SIGNIFICANT EFFECT FAVORING YOGA FOR THE OUTCOME OF QOL WAS FOUND (STANDARD MEAN DIFFERENCE=0.27, 95% CONFIDENCE INTERVAL [0.02, 0.52], P=0.03). ALTHOUGH THE EFFECTS OF YOGA ON PSYCHOLOGIC FUNCTION OUTCOMES--SUCH AS ANXIETY, DEPRESSION, DISTRESS AND SLEEP--WERE IN THE EXPECTED DIRECTION, THESE EFFECTS WERE NOT STATISTICALLY SIGNIFICANT (P>0.05). FATIGUE SHOWED NO SIGNIFICANT DIFFERENCE (P>0.05). CONCLUSIONS: THE PRESENT DATA PROVIDED LITTLE INDICATION OF HOW EFFECTIVE YOGA MIGHT BE WHEN THEY WERE APPLIED BY WOMEN WITH BREAST CANCER EXCEPT FOR MILDLY EFFECTIVE IN QOL IMPROVEMENT. THE FINDINGS WERE BASED ON A SMALL BODY OF EVIDENCE IN WHICH METHODOLOGICAL QUALITY WAS NOT HIGH. FURTHER WELL-DESIGNED RCTS WITH LARGE SAMPLE SIZE ARE NEEDED TO CLARIFY THE UTILITY OF YOGA PRACTICE FOR THIS POPULATION. 2012 7 2439 40 YOGA AND QUALITY OF LIFE IN WOMEN WITH PRIMARY DYSMENORRHEA: A SYSTEMATIC REVIEW. INTRODUCTION: PRIMARY DYSMENORRHEA IS A PREVALENT CONDITION CAUSING QUALITY OF LIFE (QOL) REDUCTION FOR MANY WOMEN, RESULTING FROM PAIN AS WELL AS PARALLEL SOCIAL AND PSYCHOLOGICAL DISTRESS. YOGA REDUCES PAIN AND SYMPATHETIC REACTIVITY, THUS PROMOTING QOL. THIS ARTICLE REPORTS A SYSTEMATIC REVIEW OF THE EVIDENCE FOR THE EFFECTIVENESS OF YOGA AS A QOL IMPROVEMENT METHOD FOR WOMEN WITH PRIMARY DYSMENORRHEA. METHODS: THE PRISMA GUIDELINES WERE USED IN PREPARATION OF THIS REVIEW. OVID MEDLINE, PSYCINFO, CINAHL, SCOPUS, PUBMED, SCIENCEDIRECT, COCHRANE DATABASE OF SYSTEMATIC REVIEWS (CDSR), AND COCHRANE CENTRAL REGISTER OF CONTROLLED TRIALS (CENTRAL) WERE SCREENED THROUGH JANUARY 2017 USING THE KEYWORDS YOGA, MEDITATION, MENSTRUAL CYCLE, DYSMENORRHEA, PELVIC PAIN, AND PROSTAGLANDINS. ENGLISH-LANGUAGE RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED TRIALS (RCTS) AND QUASI-EXPERIMENTAL STUDIES REGARDING YOGA, PRIMARY DYSMENORRHEA, AND QOL WERE ELIGIBLE; ALL YOGA STYLES WERE INCLUDED. TWO INDEPENDENT REVIEWERS RATED THE METHODOLOGICAL QUALITY OF EACH STUDY SELECTED FOR REVIEW USING THE DOWNS AND BLACK CHECKLIST; POSSIBLE SCORES RANGED FROM 0 TO 32. RATINGS WERE ESTABLISHED THROUGH CONSENSUS. RESULTS: THE SEARCH YIELDED A TOTAL OF 378 ARTICLES, OF WHICH 14 (AGE RANGE 13-45 YEARS, N = 1409) MET THE CRITERIA FOR FINAL REVIEW: 8 RCTS AND 6 QUASI-EXPERIMENTAL STUDIES. DOWNS AND BLACK RATINGS WERE PREDOMINANTLY MODERATE IN QUALITY WITH MODERATE RISK OF BIAS, RANGING FROM 15 TO 23 (RCTS) AND 10 TO 17 (QUASI-EXPERIMENTAL STUDIES). STATISTICALLY SIGNIFICANT IMPROVEMENTS ALONG MOST QOL DOMAINS, INCLUDING PHYSICAL PAIN, SLEEP, CONCENTRATION, NEGATIVE FEELINGS, SOCIAL RELATIONSHIPS, WORK CAPACITY, AND OVERALL QOL, WERE IDENTIFIED AFTER A YOGA INTERVENTION. RESULTS INDICATE PRELIMINARY EVIDENCE FOR YOGA AS A SAFE AND EFFECTIVE QOL IMPROVEMENT METHOD FOR WOMEN WITH PRIMARY DYSMENORRHEA. DISCUSSION: PRACTITIONERS MAY CONSIDER YOGA FOR MANAGEMENT OF PRIMARY DYSMENORRHEA. HOWEVER, FUTURE RESEARCH USING LARGER RCTS OF HIGH METHODOLOGICAL QUALITY IS NEEDED TO ASCERTAIN THE MAGNITUDE OF YOGA'S CLINICAL SIGNIFICANCE. 2018 8 2592 38 YOGA FOR MENOPAUSAL SYMPTOMS: A SYSTEMATIC REVIEW. OBJECTIVE: THE AIM OF THIS STUDY WAS TO ASSESS THE EFFECTIVENESS OF YOGA AS A TREATMENT OPTION FOR MENOPAUSAL SYMPTOMS. METHODS: WE SEARCHED THE LITERATURE USING 14 DATABASES FROM THEIR INCEPTION TO JULY 2008 AND INCLUDED ALL TYPES OF CLINICAL STUDIES REGARDLESS OF THEIR DESIGN. THE METHODOLOGICAL QUALITY OF ALL STUDIES WAS ASSESSED USING A MODIFIED JADAD SCORE. RESULTS: SEVEN STUDIES MET OUR INCLUSION CRITERIA. TWO RANDOMIZED CLINICAL TRIALS COMPARED THE EFFECTS OF YOGA WITH THOSE OF WALKING OR PHYSICAL EXERCISE. THE META-ANALYSIS OF THESE DATA FAILED TO SHOW SPECIFIC EFFECTS OF YOGA ON MENOPAUSAL COMPLAINTS INCLUDING PSYCHOLOGICAL, SOMATIC, AND VASOMOTOR SYMPTOMS. TWO RANDOMIZED CLINICAL TRIALS FOUND NO EFFECTS OF YOGA ON TOTAL MENOPAUSAL SYMPTOMS COMPARED WITH WAIT-LIST CONTROL OR NO TREATMENT. THE REMAINING STUDIES WERE EITHER NON-RANDOMIZED (N = 1) OR UNCONTROLLED CLINICAL TRIALS (N = 3). THEY REPORTED FAVORABLE EFFECTS OF YOGA ON MENOPAUSAL SYMPTOMS. THESE DATA COLLECTIVELY SHOW THAT THE RESULTS OF RIGOROUS STUDIES OF THE EFFECTS OF YOGA FOR MENOPAUSAL SYMPTOMS ARE UNCONVINCING. CONCLUSION: THE EVIDENCE IS INSUFFICIENT TO SUGGEST THAT YOGA IS AN EFFECTIVE INTERVENTION FOR MENOPAUSE. FURTHER RESEARCH IS REQUIRED TO INVESTIGATE WHETHER THERE ARE SPECIFIC BENEFITS OF YOGA FOR TREATING MENOPAUSAL SYMPTOMS. 2009 9 2742 38 YOGA PRACTICE FOR THE MANAGEMENT OF TYPE II DIABETES MELLITUS IN ADULTS: A SYSTEMATIC REVIEW. THE EFFECT OF PRACTICING YOGA FOR THE MANAGEMENT OF TYPE II DIABETES WAS ASSESSED IN THIS SYSTEMATIC REVIEW THROUGH SEARCHING RELATED ELECTRONIC DATABASES AND THE GREY LITERATURE TO THE END OF MAY 2007 USING OVID. ALL RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED CLINICAL TRIALS (RCTS) COMPARING YOGA PRACTICE WITH OTHER TYPE OF INTERVENTION OR WITH REGULAR PRACTICE OR BOTH, WERE INCLUDED REGARDLESS OF LANGUAGE OR TYPE OF PUBLICATION. EACH STUDY WAS ASSESSED FOR QUALITY BY TWO INDEPENDENT REVIEWERS. MEAN DIFFERENCE WAS USED FOR SUMMARIZING THE EFFECT OF EACH STUDY OUTCOMES WITH 95% CONFIDENCE INTERVALS. POOLING OF THE STUDIES DID NOT TAKE PLACE DUE TO THE WIDE CLINICAL VARIATION BETWEEN THE STUDIES. PUBLICATION BIAS WAS ASSESSED BY STATISTICAL METHODS. FIVE TRIALS WITH 363 PARTICIPANTS MET THE INCLUSION CRITERIA WITH MEDIUM TO HIGH RISK OF BIAS AND DIFFERENT INTERVENTION CHARACTERISTICS. THE STUDIES' RESULTS SHOW IMPROVEMENT IN OUTCOMES AMONG PATIENTS WITH DIABETES TYPE II. THESE IMPROVEMENTS WERE MAINLY AMONG SHORT TERM OR IMMEDIATE DIABETES OUTCOMES AND NOT ALL WERE STATISTICALLY SIGNIFICANT. THE RESULTS WERE INCONCLUSIVE AND NOT SIGNIFICANT FOR THE LONG-TERM OUTCOMES. NO ADVERSE EFFECTS WERE REPORTED IN ANY OF THE INCLUDED STUDIES. SHORT-TERM BENEFITS FOR PATIENTS WITH DIABETES MAY BE ACHIEVED FROM PRACTICING YOGA. FURTHER RESEARCH IS NEEDED IN THIS AREA. FACTORS LIKE QUALITY OF THE TRIALS AND OTHER METHODOLOGICAL ISSUES SHOULD BE IMPROVED BY LARGE RANDOMIZED CONTROL TRIALS WITH ALLOCATION CONCEALMENT TO ASSESS THE EFFECTIVENESS OF YOGA ON DIABETES TYPE II. A DEFINITIVE RECOMMENDATION FOR PHYSICIANS TO ENCOURAGE THEIR PATIENTS TO PRACTICE YOGA CANNOT BE REACHED AT PRESENT. 2010 10 2689 38 YOGA IN THE WORKPLACE AND HEALTH OUTCOMES: A SYSTEMATIC REVIEW. BACKGROUND: HEALTH PROMOTION IN THE WORKPLACE IS INTENDED TO ENHANCE EMPLOYEE HEALTH AND WELL-BEING. YOGA PROGRAMMES ARE EASY TO IMPLEMENT AND HAVE BEEN EFFECTIVE IN THE MANAGEMENT OF VARIOUS HEALTH CONDITIONS. AIMS: TO ASSESS THE EVIDENCE REGARDING THE EFFECTIVENESS OF YOGA PROGRAMMES AT WORK. METHODS: A SEARCH OF ELECTRONIC DATABASES OF PUBLISHED STUDIES UP UNTIL THE 1ST OF APRIL 2017. INCLUSION CRITERIA FOR THE SYSTEMATIC REVIEW WERE RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED TRIALS OF ADULT EMPLOYEES AND YOGA IN THE WORKPLACE. QUALITY APPRAISAL WAS CARRIED OUT USING THE COCHRANE COLLABORATION'S TOOL FOR ASSESSING RISK OF BIAS IN RANDOMIZED TRIALS. RESULTS: OF 1343 PAPERS IDENTIFIED, 13 STUDIES MET THE INCLUSION CRITERIA. NINE OUT OF 13 TRIALS WERE CLASSIFIED AS HAVING AN UNCLEAR RISK OF BIAS. THE OVERALL EFFECTS OF YOGA ON MENTAL HEALTH OUTCOMES WERE BENEFICIAL, MAINLY ON STRESS. MOST OF THE CARDIOVASCULAR ENDPOINTS SHOWED NO DIFFERENCES BETWEEN YOGA AND CONTROLS. OTHER OUTCOMES REPORTED POSITIVE EFFECTS OF YOGA OR NO CHANGE. CONCLUSIONS: THE FINDINGS OF THIS STUDY SUGGEST THAT YOGA HAS A POSITIVE EFFECT ON HEALTH IN THE WORKPLACE, PARTICULARLY IN REDUCING STRESS, AND NO NEGATIVE EFFECTS WERE REPORTED IN ANY OF THE RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED TRIALS. FURTHER LARGER STUDIES ARE REQUIRED TO CONFIRM THIS. 2019 11 1856 45 RANDOMISED CONTROLLED TRIALS OF YOGA INTERVENTIONS FOR WOMEN WITH BREAST CANCER: A SYSTEMATIC LITERATURE REVIEW. PURPOSE: YOGA IS INCREASINGLY USED AS A COMPLEMENTARY THERAPY TO MANAGE DISEASE AND TREATMENT-RELATED SIDE EFFECTS IN PATIENTS WITH CANCER AND HAS RESULTED IN AN INCREASE IN THE NUMBER OF STUDIES EXPLORING THE EFFECTIVENESS OF YOGA INTERVENTIONS. THIS SYSTEMATIC REVIEW EXAMINES WHETHER YOGA INTERVENTIONS PROVIDE ANY MEASURABLE BENEFIT, BOTH PHYSICALLY AND PSYCHOLOGICALLY, FOR WOMEN WITH BREAST CANCER. THE RESULTS WILL INFORM FUTURE RESEARCH IN THIS FIELD AND ADVANCE THE DEVELOPMENT OF YOGA PROGRAMMES. METHODS: WE PERFORMED ELECTRONIC SEARCHES OF MEDLINE, PSYCHINFO, THE COCHRANE LIBRARY, EMBASE, CINAHL, AMED, WEB OF SCIENCE AND SCOPUS FOR ARTICLES PUBLISHED UP TO JUNE 2012. ONLY RANDOMISED CONTROLLED TRIALS (RCTS) WERE INCLUDED AND METHODOLOGICAL QUALITY RATING SCORES WERE DETERMINED USING THE PEDRO (PHYSIOTHERAPY EVIDENCE DATABASE) SCALE. RESULTS: ONE HUNDRED THIRTY-TWO STUDIES WERE IDENTIFIED THROUGH A SYSTEMATIC SEARCH OF EIGHT ELECTRONIC DATABASES. ONLY PUBLISHED MANUSCRIPTS THAT EMPLOYED A RCT DESIGN WERE INCLUDED (N = 18). THE SAMPLE SIZES FOR THESE STUDIES VARIED WIDELY FROM 18 TO 164 PARTICIPANTS AND THE ASSOCIATED PEDRO SCORES RANGED FROM 1 (POOR) TO 8 (GOOD). ALL 18 STUDIES REPORTED POSITIVE EFFECTS FOR TREATMENT-RELATED SIDE EFFECTS IN FAVOUR OF THE YOGA INTERVENTIONS, WITH THE GREATEST IMPACT ON GLOBAL QUALITY OF LIFE (QOL) SCORES AND EMOTIONAL WELL-BEING. CONCLUSION: RESULTS FROM THE FEW RCTS SUGGEST THERE IS MODERATE TO GOOD EVIDENCE THAT YOGA MAY BE A USEFUL PRACTICE FOR WOMEN RECOVERING FROM BREAST CANCER TREATMENTS. LARGE-SCALE RCTS USING OBJECTIVE MEASURES AND PATIENT-REPORTED OUTCOMES WITH LONG-TERM FOLLOW-UP ARE NEEDED TO SUBSTANTIATE WHETHER THE BENEFITS ARE TRUE AND SUSTAINABLE. 2012 12 1124 39 EFFICACY OF PRENATAL YOGA IN THE TREATMENT OF DEPRESSION AND ANXIETY DURING PREGNANCY: A SYSTEMATIC REVIEW AND META-ANALYSIS. WOMEN COMMONLY SUFFER FROM DEPRESSION DURING PREGNANCY. FOR REDUCING DEPRESSION, YOGA SEEMS TO BE MORE SUITABLE FOR PREGNANT WOMEN THAN OTHER PHYSICAL ACTIVITIES BECAUSE OF ITS LOW EXERCISE INTENSITY. THE OBJECTIVE OF THIS STUDY WAS TO ASSESS THE EFFICACY OF PRENATAL YOGA ON THE TREATMENT OF DEPRESSION DURING PREGNANCY. THREE ELECTRONIC DATABASES WERE SEARCHED FOR RELEVANT ARTICLES FROM THEIR INCEPTION TO MAY 2021, INCLUDING PUBMED, COCHRANE LIBRARY, AND SCIENCEDIRECT. PRE- AND POST-TEST OUTCOMES WERE ADOPTED TO ESTIMATE STANDARDIZED MEAN DIFFERENCE WITH A 95% CONFIDENCE INTERVAL FOR ASSESSING THE EFFICACY OF YOGA. HETEROGENEITY AMONG ARTICLES WAS DETECTED USING I(2) VALUE. A TOTAL OF 13 ARTICLES THAT CONTAINED 379 SUBJECTS WERE INCLUDED FOR META-ANALYSIS. NO SIGNIFICANT IMPROVEMENT IN DEPRESSION SCORES AFTER PRACTICING YOGA WAS OBSERVED FOR WOMEN WITHOUT DEPRESSION (P = 0.09) BUT SIGNIFICANT IMPROVEMENT WAS OBSERVED FOR WOMEN WITH DEPRESSION (P = 0.001). ALTHOUGH SIGNIFICANT IMPROVEMENT IN ANXIETY SCORES AFTER YOGA WAS OBSERVED FOR WOMEN WITHOUT DEPRESSION (P = 0.02), THE RESULTS OF THE SENSITIVITY ANALYSIS WERE NOT CONSISTENT, WHILE SIGNIFICANT IMPROVEMENT IN ANXIETY SCORES AFTER YOGA WAS ALSO OBSERVED FOR WOMEN WITH DEPRESSION (P < 0.00001). THE CURRENT EVIDENCE HAS SUGGESTED THAT YOGA HAD SIGNIFICANT IMPROVEMENT IN DEPRESSION AND ANXIETY SCORES IN PREGNANT WOMEN WITH DEPRESSION. HOWEVER, THE LEVEL OF EVIDENCE OF THIS STUDY WAS NOT HIGH. MORE ARTICLES WITH HIGH LEVELS OF EVIDENCE SHOULD BE CONDUCTED TO CONFIRM OUR CONCLUSION IN THE FUTURE. 2022 13 2105 28 THE EFFECT OF YOGA ON MENSTRUAL DISORDERS: A SYSTEMATIC REVIEW. OBJECTIVE: TO SUMMARIZE AND EVALUATE EVIDENCE FOR THE EFFECT OF YOGA ON MENSTRUAL DISORDERS. METHODS: PUBMED, CINAHL/MEDLINE, WEB OF SCIENCE, AMED, AND SCOPUS WERE SEARCHED FOR ENGLISH-LANGUAGE LITERATURE RELEVANT TO THE REVIEW QUESTION. ALL PRIMARY RESEARCH STUDIES WERE INCLUDED. RESULTS: FIFTEEN STUDIES DESCRIBED IN 18 PAPERS WERE INCLUDED IN THE REVIEW. A RANGE OF YOGA INTERVENTIONS WERE USED. SOME STUDIES USED A COMBINATION OF ASANA, PRANAYAMA, AND OTHER YOGIC RELAXATION OR MEDITATION TECHNIQUES. ALL INCLUDED STUDIES REPORTED SOME CHANGE IN THEIR OUTCOME MEASURES, SUGGESTING REDUCED SYMPTOMS OF MENSTRUAL DISTRESS FOLLOWING A YOGA INTERVENTION; HOWEVER, THE HETEROGENEITY AND INTENSITY OF THE INTERVENTIONS AND OUTCOME MEASURES MEANT THAT FINDINGS HAVE LIMITED GENERALIZABILITY AND APPLICABILITY IN PRACTICE SETTINGS. CONCLUSIONS: FURTHER RESEARCH ON THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN YOGA PRACTICE AND MENSTRUAL DISORDERS IS WARRANTED, BUT THERE MUST BE BOTH CONSISTENCY IN THE METHODS, MEASURES, AND QUALITY OF STUDIES AND A SHIFT TOWARD RESEARCH ON YOGA PRACTICES THAT ARE REPLICABLE OUTSIDE OF THE CLINICAL TRIAL SETTING. 2017 14 227 37 A SYSTEMATIC REVIEW OF THE EFFECT OF LAUGHTER YOGA ON PHYSICAL FUNCTION AND PSYCHOSOCIAL OUTCOMES IN OLDER ADULTS. BACKGROUND: LAUGHTER YOGA IS ONE OF THE INCREASINGLY USED METHODS AMONG COMPLEMENTARY HEALTH APPROACHES IN THE WORLD. THE AIM OF THIS STUDY WAS TO DETERMINE THE EFFECTIVENESS OF LAUGHTER YOGA ON PHYSICAL FUNCTION AND PSYCHOSOCIAL OUTCOMES IN OLDER ADULTS. METHODS: IN THIS SYSTEMATIC REVIEW, ELECTRONIC SEARCHES WERE PERFORMED IN CINAHL, WEB OF SCIENCE, COCHRANE, SCOPUS, PROQUEST DATABASES FROM MAY 2010 TO MAY 2020. THE SCREENING PROCESS WAS CONDUCTED BY TWO AUTHORS INDEPENDENTLY AND FINALLY AGREED TOGETHER. THE REVIEW WAS REPORTED ACCORDING TO PRISMA GUIDELINE. RESULTS: A TOTAL OF 3210 STUDIES WERE EXAMINED, AND SEVEN PUBLICATIONS (SIX QUASI EXPERIMENTAL AND ONE RANDOMIZED CONTROL TRIAL), IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE INCLUSION CRITERIA WERE INCLUDED IN THE STUDY AND EVALUATED. THE RESULTS INDICATED THAT SIGNIFICANT DIFFERENCES WERE FOUND IN THE EFFECTIVENESS OF LAUGHTER YOGA ON PHYSICAL FUNCTION (BLOOD PRESSURE, CORTISOL LEVEL, SLEEP QUALITY) AND PSYCHOSOCIAL HEALTH (LIFE SATISFACTION, QUALITY OF LIFE, LONELINESS, DEATH ANXIETY, DEPRESSION, MOOD, HAPPINESS) IN OLDER ADULTS. CONCLUSION: LAUGHTER YOGA IS A COST-EFFECTIVE AND NO ADVERSE EFFECT IN OLDER ADULTS. IT CAN BE USED FOR HEALTH PROMOTION FOR OLDER ADULTS. 2020 15 1519 33 IS YOGA EFFECTIVE FOR PAIN? A SYSTEMATIC REVIEW OF RANDOMIZED CLINICAL TRIALS. OBJECTIVE: THE OBJECTIVE OF THIS SYSTEMATIC REVIEW WAS TO ASSESS THE EFFECTIVENESS OF YOGA AS A TREATMENT OPTION FOR ANY TYPE OF PAIN. METHOD: SEVEN DATABASES WERE SEARCHED FROM THEIR INCEPTION TO FEBRUARY 2011. RANDOMIZED CLINICAL TRIALS WERE CONSIDERED IF THEY INVESTIGATED YOGA IN PATIENTS WITH ANY TYPE OF PAIN AND IF THEY ASSESSED PAIN AS A PRIMARY OUTCOME MEASURE. THE 5-POINT JADAD SCALE WAS USED TO ASSESS METHODOLOGICAL QUALITY OF STUDIES. THE SELECTION OF STUDIES, DATA EXTRACTION AND QUALITY ASSESSMENT WERE PERFORMED INDEPENDENTLY BY TWO REVIEWERS. RESULTS: TEN RANDOMIZED CLINICAL TRIALS (RCTS) MET THE INCLUSION CRITERIA. THEIR METHODOLOGICAL QUALITY RANGED BETWEEN 1 AND 4 ON THE JADAD SCALE. NINE RCTS SUGGESTED THAT YOGA LEADS TO A SIGNIFICANTLY GREATER REDUCTION IN PAIN THAN VARIOUS CONTROL INTERVENTIONS SUCH AS STANDARD CARE, SELF CARE, THERAPEUTIC EXERCISES, RELAXING YOGA, TOUCH AND MANIPULATION, OR NO INTERVENTION. ONE RCT FAILED TO PROVIDE BETWEEN GROUP DIFFERENCES IN PAIN SCORES. CONCLUSIONS: IT IS CONCLUDED THAT YOGA HAS THE POTENTIAL FOR ALLEVIATING PAIN. HOWEVER, DEFINITIVE JUDGMENTS ARE NOT POSSIBLE. 2011 16 2573 34 YOGA FOR ESSENTIAL HYPERTENSION: A SYSTEMATIC REVIEW. BACKGROUND: YOGA IS THOUGHT TO BE EFFECTIVE FOR HEALTH CONDITIONS. THE ARTICLE AIMS TO ASSESS THE CURRENT CLINICAL EVIDENCE OF YOGA FOR ESSENTIAL HYPERTENSION (EH). STRATEGY: MEDLINE, EMBASE, AND THE COCHRANE CENTRAL REGISTER OF CONTROLLED TRIALS (CENTRAL) IN THE COCHRANE LIBRARY WERE SEARCHED UNTIL JUNE, 2013. WE INCLUDED RANDOMIZED CLINICAL TRIALS TESTING YOGA AGAINST CONVENTIONAL THERAPY, YOGA VERSUS NO TREATMENT, YOGA COMBINED WITH CONVENTIONAL THERAPY VERSUS CONVENTIONAL THERAPY OR CONVENTIONAL THERAPY COMBINED WITH BREATH AWARENESS. STUDY SELECTION, DATA EXTRACTION, QUALITY ASSESSMENT, AND DATA ANALYSES WERE CONDUCTED ACCORDING TO THE COCHRANE STANDARDS. RESULTS: A TOTAL OF 6 STUDIES (INVOLVING 386 PATIENTS) WERE INCLUDED. THE METHODOLOGICAL QUALITY OF THE INCLUDED TRIALS WAS EVALUATED AS GENERALLY LOW. A TOTAL OF 6 RCTS MET ALL THE INCLUSION CRITERIA. 4 OF THEM COMPARED YOGA PLUS CONVENTIONAL THERAPY WITH CONVENTIONAL THERAPY. 1 RCT DESCRIBED YOGA COMBINED WITH CONVENTIONAL THERAPY VERSUS CONVENTIONAL THERAPY COMBINED WITH BREATH AWARENESS. 2 RCT TESTED THE EFFECT OF YOGA VERSUS CONVENTIONAL THERAPY ALONE. 1 RCT DESCRIBED YOGA COMPARED TO NO TREATMENT. ONLY ONE TRIAL REPORTED ADVERSE EVENTS WITHOUT DETAILS, THE SAFETY OF YOGA IS STILL UNCERTAIN. CONCLUSIONS: THERE IS SOME ENCOURAGING EVIDENCE OF YOGA FOR LOWERING SBP AND DBP. HOWEVER, DUE TO LOW METHODOLOGICAL QUALITY OF THESE IDENTIFIED TRIALS, A DEFINITE CONCLUSION ABOUT THE EFFICACY AND SAFETY OF YOGA ON EH CANNOT BE DRAWN FROM THIS REVIEW. THEREFORE, FURTHER THOROUGH INVESTIGATION, LARGE-SCALE, PROPER STUDY DESIGNED, RANDOMIZED TRIALS OF YOGA FOR HYPERTENSION WILL BE REQUIRED TO JUSTIFY THE EFFECTS REPORTED HERE. 2013 17 1057 41 EFFECTS OF YOGA ON DEPRESSIVE SYMPTOMS IN PEOPLE WITH MENTAL DISORDERS: A SYSTEMATIC REVIEW AND META-ANALYSIS. OBJECTIVE: TO ASSESS WHETHER PHYSICALLY ACTIVE YOGA IS SUPERIOR TO WAITLIST CONTROL, TREATMENT AS USUAL AND ATTENTION CONTROL IN ALLEVIATING DEPRESSIVE SYMPTOMS IN PEOPLE WITH A DIAGNOSED MENTAL DISORDER RECOGNISED BY THE DIAGNOSTIC AND STATISTICAL MANUAL OF MENTAL DISORDERS (DSM). DESIGN: SYSTEMATIC REVIEW AND META-ANALYSIS FOLLOWING THE PREFERRED REPORTING ITEMS FOR SYSTEMATIC REVIEWS AND META-ANALYSES (PRISMA) GUIDELINES. DATA SOURCES: DATA WERE OBTAINED FROM ONLINE DATABASES (MEDLINE, EMBASE, PSYCHINFO, CENTRAL, EMCARE, PEDRO). THE SEARCH AND COLLECTION OF ELIGIBLE STUDIES WAS CONDUCTED UP TO 14 MAY 2019 (PROSPERO REGISTRATION NO CRD42018090441). ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA FOR SELECTING STUDIES: WE INCLUDED RANDOMISED CONTROLLED TRIALS WITH A YOGA INTERVENTION COMPRISING >/=50% PHYSICAL ACTIVITY IN ADULTS WITH A RECOGNISED DIAGNOSED MENTAL DISORDER ACCORDING TO DSM-3, 4 OR 5. RESULTS: 19 STUDIES WERE INCLUDED IN THE REVIEW (1080 PARTICIPANTS) AND 13 STUDIES WERE INCLUDED IN THE META-ANALYSIS (632 PARTICIPANTS). DISORDERS OF DEPRESSION, POST-TRAUMATIC STRESS, SCHIZOPHRENIA, ANXIETY, ALCOHOL DEPENDENCE AND BIPOLAR WERE INCLUDED. YOGA SHOWED GREATER REDUCTIONS IN DEPRESSIVE SYMPTOMS THAN WAITLIST, TREATMENT AS USUAL AND ATTENTION CONTROL (STANDARDISED MEAN DIFFERENCE=0.41; 95% CI -0.65 TO -0.17; P<0.001). GREATER REDUCTIONS IN DEPRESSIVE SYMPTOMS WERE ASSOCIATED WITH HIGHER FREQUENCY OF YOGA SESSIONS PER WEEK (BETA=-0.44, P<0.01). 2021 18 826 43 EFFECT OF YOGA ON HEALTH-RELATED QUALITY OF LIFE IN CENTRAL NERVOUS SYSTEM DISORDERS: A SYSTEMATIC REVIEW. OBJECTIVE: INVESTIGATE THE EFFECT OF YOGA ON HEALTH-RELATED QUALITY OF LIFE (HRQOL) IN PATIENTS WITH CENTRAL NERVOUS SYSTEM DISORDERS. METHODS: A SYSTEMATIC SEARCH WAS CONDUCTED ON THE PUBMED-NCBI, EBSCO HOST, COCHRANE LIBRARY, SCOPUS AND SCIENCEDIRECT DATABASES UNTIL 05 APRIL 2021. ONLY RANDOMIZED CONTROL TRIALS PUBLISHED IN ENGLISH OR FRENCH WERE INCLUDED AND HAD TO COMPARE YOGA TO ANOTHER INTERVENTION GROUP OR A CONTROL GROUP. THEY ALSO HAD TO CLEARLY MEASURE HRQOL. METHODOLOGICAL QUALITY WAS ASSESSED WITH THE REVISED COCHRANE RISK-OF-BIAS TOOL FOR RANDOMIZED TRIALS AND THE QUALITY OF EVIDENCE WAS EVALUATED USING THE GRADING OF RECOMMENDATIONS ASSESSMENT, DEVELOPMENT AND EVALUATION (GRADE) CRITERIA. RESULTS: SIXTEEN STUDIES WERE FOUND, INCLUDING SIX FOR MULTIPLE SCLEROSIS, FIVE FOR PARKINSON'S DISEASE, TWO FOR STROKE, ONE FOR DEMENTIA, ONE FOR EPILEPSY AND ONE FOR BRAIN TUMOUR. ONLY 12 STUDIES PERFORMED BETWEEN-GROUP STATISTICS AND 8 FOUND A SIGNIFICANT DIFFERENCE BETWEEN GROUPS AFTER TREATMENT. WHEN YOGA WAS COMPARED TO NO INTERVENTION, THE RESULTS WERE GENERALLY IN FAVOUR OF THE YOGA GROUP, BUT WHEN YOGA WAS COMPARED TO ANOTHER INTERVENTION PROGRAMME, THERE WAS GENERALLY NO SIGNIFICANT DIFFERENCE BETWEEN GROUPS. THERE WERE MANY DIFFERENT HRQOL QUESTIONNAIRES, EVEN WITHIN THE SAME DISEASE, WHICH REDUCES THE COMPARABILITY OF STUDIES. CONCLUSIONS: WITH LOW TO MODERATE QUALITY OF THE EVIDENCE, YOGA SEEMS EFFECTIVE TO IMPROVE HRQOL IN PEOPLE WITH PARKINSON'S DISEASE. FOR MULTIPLE SCLEROSIS, STROKE, DEMENTIA, EPILEPSY AND BRAIN TUMOUR, THE QUALITY OF THE EVIDENCE IS STILL INSUFFICIENT TO CONCLUDE OF THE EFFECTIVENESS OF YOGA. 2021 19 1084 28 EFFECTS OF YOGA ON STRESS MANAGEMENT IN HEALTHY ADULTS: A SYSTEMATIC REVIEW. OBJECTIVE: THIS ARTICLE REPORTS A SYSTEMATIC REVIEW AND CRITICAL APPRAISAL OF THE EFFECT OF YOGA ON STRESS MANAGEMENT IN HEALTHY ADULTS. METHODS: A SYSTEMATIC LITERATURE SEARCH WAS PERFORMED TO IDENTIFY RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED TRIALS (RCTS) AND CLINICAL CONTROLLED TRIALS (CCTS) THAT ASSESSED THE EFFECTS OF YOGA ON STRESS MANAGEMENT IN HEALTHY ADULTS. SELECTED STUDIES WERE CLASSIFIED ACCORDING TO THE TYPES OF INTERVENTION, DURATION, OUTCOME MEASURES, AND RESULTS. THEY WERE ALSO QUALITATIVELY ASSESSED BASED ON PUBLIC HEALTH RESEARCH, EDUCATION AND DEVELOPMENT STANDARDS. RESULTS: THE SYSTEMATIC REVIEW WAS BASED ON EIGHT RCTS AND CCTS THAT INDICATED A POSITIVE EFFECT OF YOGA IN REDUCING STRESS LEVELS OR STRESS SYMPTOMS. HOWEVER, MOST OF THE STUDIES HAD METHODOLOGICAL PROBLEMS IN THAT THE INTERVENTION DURATION WAS SHORT AND LIMITED FOLLOW-UP DATA WAS AVAILABLE. CONCLUSION: THIS REVIEW REVEALED POSITIVE EFFECTS OF YOGA ON STRESS REDUCTION IN HEALTHY ADULT POPULATIONS. HOWEVER, THE RESULT SHOULD BE INTERPRETED WITH CAUTION DUE TO THE SMALL NUMBER OF STUDIES AND THE ASSOCIATED METHODOLOGICAL PROBLEMS. FURTHER STUDIES TO ASCERTAIN YOGA'S LONG-TERM EFFECTS AND THE UNDERLYING BIOLOGICAL MECHANISMS LEADING TO ITS STRESS REDUCTION EFFECT SHOULD BE CONDUCTED. 2011 20 2569 43 YOGA FOR DEPRESSION: THE RESEARCH EVIDENCE. BACKGROUND: YOGA-BASED INTERVENTIONS MAY PROVE TO BE AN ATTRACTIVE OPTION FOR THE TREATMENT OF DEPRESSION. THE AIM OF THIS STUDY IS TO SYSTEMATICALLY REVIEW THE RESEARCH EVIDENCE ON THE EFFECTIVENESS OF YOGA FOR THIS INDICATION. METHODS: SEARCHES OF THE MAJOR BIOMEDICAL DATABASES INCLUDING MEDLINE, EMBASE, CLNAHL, PSYCINFO AND THE COCHRANE LIBRARY WERE CONDUCTED. SPECIALIST COMPLEMENTARY AND ALTERNATIVE MEDICINE (CAM) AND THE INDMED DATABASES WERE ALSO SEARCHED AND EFFORTS MADE TO IDENTIFY UNPUBLISHED AND ONGOING RESEARCH. SEARCHES WERE CONDUCTED BETWEEN JANUARY AND JUNE 2004. RELEVANT RESEARCH WAS CATEGORISED BY STUDY TYPE AND APPRAISED. CLINICAL COMMENTARIES WERE OBTAINED FOR STUDIES REPORTING CLINICAL OUTCOMES. RESULTS: FIVE RANDOMISED CONTROLLED TRIALS WERE LOCATED, EACH OF WHICH UTILISED DIFFERENT FORMS OF YOGA INTERVENTIONS AND IN WHICH THE SEVERITY OF THE CONDITION RANGED FROM MILD TO SEVERE. ALL TRIALS REPORTED POSITIVE FINDINGS BUT METHODOLOGICAL DETAILS SUCH AS METHOD OF RANDOMISATION, COMPLIANCE AND ATTRITION RATES WERE MISSING. NO ADVERSE EFFECTS WERE REPORTED WITH THE EXCEPTION OF FATIGUE AND BREATHLESSNESS IN PARTICIPANTS IN ONE STUDY. LIMITATIONS: NO LANGUAGE RESTRICTIONS WERE IMPOSED ON THE SEARCHES CONDUCTED BUT NO SEARCHES OF DATABASES IN LANGUAGES OTHER THAN ENGLISH WERE INCLUDED. CONCLUSIONS: OVERALL, THE INITIAL INDICATIONS ARE OF POTENTIALLY BENEFICIAL EFFECTS OF YOGA INTERVENTIONS ON DEPRESSIVE DISORDERS. VARIATION IN INTERVENTIONS, SEVERITY AND REPORTING OF TRIAL METHODOLOGY SUGGESTS THAT THE FINDINGS MUST BE INTERPRETED WITH CAUTION. SEVERAL OF THE INTERVENTIONS MAY NOT BE FEASIBLE IN THOSE WITH REDUCED OR IMPAIRED MOBILITY. NEVERTHELESS, FURTHER INVESTIGATION OF YOGA AS A THERAPEUTIC INTERVENTION IS WARRANTED. 2005