1 2772 170 YOGA RESEARCH AND PUBLIC HEALTH: IS RESEARCH ALIGNED WITH THE STAKEHOLDERS' NEEDS? RESEARCH ON YOGA IS WITNESSING AN UNPRECEDENTED PROLIFERATION CURRENTLY, PARTLY BECAUSE OF GREAT INTEREST IN YOGA'S HEALTH UTILITY. HOWEVER, YOGA RESEARCH DOES NOT SEEM TO BE SUFFICIENTLY PUBLIC HEALTH ORIENTED, OR ITS QUALITY CORRESPONDING TO ITS QUANTITY. YOGA RESEARCH IS FALLING SHORT TO ENABLE KEY STAKEHOLDERS LIKE END USERS, PRESCRIBERS, AND PAYERS TO MEANINGFULLY, CONFIDENTLY, AND FRUITFULLY ANSWER THE QUESTIONS LIKE: IS IT GENERALIZABLE? IS IT STANDARDIZABLE? WHICH YOGA STYLE SHOULD BE USED/RECOMMENDED/PAID FOR? OR WILL IT BE WORTH THE MONEY? THEREFORE, IT IS IMPORTANT TO EXAMINE THE ALIGNMENT TO PURPOSE OR VALUE OF YOGA RESEARCH FROM A PUBLIC HEALTH POINT OF VIEW SO AS TO MAKE IT MORE PRACTICAL. THE ISSUES SUCH AS LACK OF CLEAR DEFINITION OF YOGA, WIDE VARIATION IN ITS DOSAGE, CACOPHONY OF LINEAGE-BASED STYLES, NO DATA ABOUT COMPARATIVE EFFECTIVENESS BETWEEN THE YOGA COMPONENTS, CONFOUNDERS AND BIASES CLOUDING THE EVIDENCE REGARDING ITS BENEFITS, TOO LITTLE DATA ON LONG-TERM ADHERENCE, EQUIVOCAL RESULTS ABOUT ITS COST EFFECTIVENESS, DISCUSSIONS LACKING EMBRACE OF BETTER METHODS IN RESEARCH, AND ABSENCE OF A THEORY OF YOGA ARE EXAMINED. THIS IS NOT A DETAILED DISCUSSION OF EVERY ISSUE YOGA RESEARCH FACES, BUT A HIGH-LEVEL OVERVIEW OF THOSE THAT HAVE DIRECT PRACTICAL BEARING. IN THE END, A FEW PRAGMATIC APPROACHES ARE OFFERED. THE ARTICLE SUGGESTS THAT YOGA-COMPONENT ANALYSIS, DEVELOPMENT OF A THEORY OF YOGA, ADOPTION OF A HEALTH-ALIGNED FUNCTIONAL TYPOLOGY OF YOGA, DEVELOPMENT AND TESTING OF A SIMPLE UNIVERSAL BASIC PROTOTYPE OF YOGA INTERVENTION, EMPHASIS ON RESEARCH ABOUT LONG-TERM ADHERENCE, AND DISCOURAGEMENT FOR MERE PROOF OF CONCEPT RESEARCH MIGHT MAKE YOGA RESEARCH SERVE THE STAKEHOLDERS BETTER. IT URGES THE RESEARCH COMMUNITY TO PRACTICE "CONTEXT COGNIZANT SCHOLARSHIP" TO DISENTANGLE HEALTH COMPATIBLE YOGA FROM ITS HISTORICAL-CULTURAL-SOCIAL BODY BEFORE EXAMINING IT FOR HEALTH OR MEDICAL APPLICATION. 2017 2 461 29 CHANGES IN PERCEIVED STRESS AFTER YOGA, PHYSICAL THERAPY, AND EDUCATION INTERVENTIONS FOR CHRONIC LOW BACK PAIN: A SECONDARY ANALYSIS OF A RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED TRIAL. OBJECTIVE: PERCEIVED STRESS AND MUSCULOSKELETAL PAIN ARE COMMON, ESPECIALLY IN LOW-INCOME POPULATIONS. STUDIES EVALUATING TREATMENTS TO REDUCE STRESS IN PATIENTS WITH CHRONIC PAIN ARE LACKING. WE AIMED TO QUANTIFY THE EFFECT OF TWO EVIDENCE-BASED INTERVENTIONS FOR CHRONIC LOW BACK PAIN (CLBP), YOGA AND PHYSICAL THERAPY (PT), ON PERCEIVED STRESS IN ADULTS WITH CLBP. METHODS: WE USED DATA FROM AN ASSESSOR-BLINDED, PARALLEL-GROUP RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED TRIAL, WHICH RECRUITED PREDOMINANTLY LOW-INCOME AND RACIALLY DIVERSE ADULTS WITH CLBP. PARTICIPANTS (N = 320) WERE RANDOMLY ASSIGNED TO 12 WEEKS OF YOGA, PT, OR BACK PAIN EDUCATION. WE COMPARED CHANGES IN THE 10-ITEM PERCEIVED STRESS SCALE (PSS-10) FROM BASELINE TO 12- AND 52-WEEK FOLLOW-UP AMONG YOGA AND PT PARTICIPANTS WITH THOSE RECEIVING EDUCATION. SUBANALYSES WERE CONDUCTED FOR PARTICIPANTS WITH ELEVATED PRE-INTERVENTION PERCEIVED STRESS (PSS-10 SCORE >/=17). WE CONDUCTED SENSITIVITY ANALYSES USING VARIOUS IMPUTATION METHODS TO ACCOUNT FOR POTENTIAL BIASES IN OUR ESTIMATES DUE TO MISSING DATA. RESULTS: AMONG 248 PARTICIPANTS (MEAN AGE = 46.4 YEARS, 80% NONWHITE) COMPLETING ALL THREE SURVEYS, YOGA AND PT SHOWED GREATER REDUCTIONS IN PSS-10 SCORES COMPARED WITH EDUCATION AT 12 WEEKS (MEAN BETWEEN-GROUP DIFFERENCE = -2.6, 95% CONFIDENCE INTERVAL [CI] = -4.5 TO -0.66, AND MEAN BETWEEN-GROUP DIFFERENCE = -2.4, 95% CI = -4.4 TO -0.48, RESPECTIVELY). THIS EFFECT WAS STRONGER AMONG PARTICIPANTS WITH ELEVATED PRE-INTERVENTION PERCEIVED STRESS. BETWEEN-GROUP EFFECTS HAD ATTENUATED BY 52 WEEKS. RESULTS WERE SIMILAR IN SENSITIVITY ANALYSES. CONCLUSIONS: YOGA AND PT WERE MORE EFFECTIVE THAN BACK PAIN EDUCATION FOR REDUCING PERCEIVED STRESS AMONG LOW-INCOME ADULTS WITH CLBP. 2020 3 1108 24 EFFECTS OF YOGA-BASED INTERVENTIONS ON CANCER-ASSOCIATED COGNITIVE DECLINE: A SYSTEMATIC REVIEW. PURPOSE OF REVIEW: TO SUMMARIZE AND EVALUATE EVIDENCE AVAILABLE ON THE EFFECTS OF YOGA ON CANCER-ASSOCIATED COGNITIVE DECLINE (CACD). RECENT FINDINGS: A SYSTEMATIC REVIEW WAS CONDUCTED USING FOUR DATABASES OF ARTICLES PUBLISHED BEFORE JANUARY 1, 2020. TEN ARTICLES MET THE INCLUSION CRITERIA (SIX RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED TRIALS, TWO SINGLE-ARM STUDIES, ONE NON-RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED TRIAL, AND ONE CASE SERIES STUDY). STUDIES WERE PREDOMINANTLY CONDUCTED WITH BREAST CANCER PATIENTS USING LOW-INTENSITY HATHA YOGA PROGRAMS. OF THE 10 ARTICLES, FIVE REPORTED SOME POSITIVE EFFECTS ON CACD, BUT SIGNIFICANT BIASES WERE POSSIBLE DUE TO DESIGN SHORTCOMINGS. COHEN'S D EFFECT SIZES RANGED FROM |0.03| TO |0.74|. THE EVIDENCE TO DATE IS INSUFFICIENT TO SUGGEST THAT YOGA IS BENEFICIAL FOR ATTENUATING CACD. MORE RIGOROUS TRIALS CONTROLLING FOR NON-SPECIFIC FACTORS ARE WARRANTED. THE FIELD WOULD ALSO BENEFIT FROM EXAMINING SELF-DELIVERED MODES OF YOGA FOR TREATING CACD IN VARIOUS CANCER POPULATIONS TO ENHANCE PRACTICE SUSTAINABILITY AND GENERALIZABILITY. 2020 4 546 23 CONTENT, STRUCTURE AND DELIVERY CHARACTERISTICS OF YOGA INTERVENTIONS FOR THE MANAGEMENT OF OSTEOARTHRITIS: A SYSTEMATIC REVIEW PROTOCOL. THE GLOBAL BURDEN OF OSTEOARTHRITIS AMONG ADULTS IS RISING. YOGA MIGHT BE A POTENTIAL SOLUTION FOR THE MANAGEMENT OF OSTEOARTHRITIS. THIS SYSTEMATIC REVIEW AIMS TO SYNTHESISE THE CONTENT, STRUCTURE AND DELIVERY CHARACTERISTICS OF EFFECTIVE YOGA INTERVENTIONS FOR THE MANAGEMENT OF OSTEOARTHRITIS. THE JBI METHODOLOGY FOR SYSTEMATIC REVIEWS OF EFFECTIVENESS AND THE PREFERRED REPORTING ITEMS FOR SYSTEMATIC REVIEWS AND META-ANALYSES (PRISMA) GUIDELINES WILL BE FOLLOWED. RANDOMISED CONTROLLED TRIALS (RCTS) ASSESSING THE EFFECTIVENESS OF YOGA INTERVENTIONS FOR THE MANAGEMENT OF OSTEOARTHRITIS IN ADULTS WILL BE INCLUDED IN THIS REVIEW. WE AIM TO SEARCH THE FOLLOWING DATABASES TO FIND PUBLISHED AND UNPUBLISHED STUDIES: MEDLINE, EMBASE, CINAHL, PSYCINFO, SPORTDISCUS, AMED, WEB OF SCIENCE, CENTRAL, TRIP, AYUSH RESEARCH PORTAL, ABIM, CAM-QUEST, PEDRO, OPENGREY, ETHOS, PROQUEST DISSERTATIONS AND THESES AND DART-EUROPE-E-THESES PORTAL. NO DATE OR LANGUAGE RESTRICTIONS WILL BE APPLIED. A NARRATIVE SYNTHESIS WILL BE CONDUCTED WITH THE HELP OF TABLES. A META-REGRESSION WILL BE CONDUCTED TO EXPLORE THE STATISTICAL EVIDENCE FOR WHICH THE COMPONENTS (CONTENT, STRUCTURE AND DELIVERY CHARACTERISTICS) OF YOGA INTERVENTIONS ARE EFFECTIVE. 2022 5 545 22 CONTENT, STRUCTURE AND DELIVERY CHARACTERISTICS OF YOGA INTERVENTIONS FOR MANAGING RHEUMATOID ARTHRITIS: A SYSTEMATIC REVIEW PROTOCOL. THE GLOBAL BURDEN OF RHEUMATOID ARTHRITIS AMONG ADULTS IS RISING. YOGA MIGHT BE A POTENTIAL SOLUTION FOR MANAGING RHEUMATOID ARTHRITIS. THIS SYSTEMATIC REVIEW AIMS TO SYNTHESISE THE CONTENT, STRUCTURE AND DELIVERY CHARACTERISTICS OF EFFECTIVE YOGA INTERVENTIONS FOR MANAGING RHEUMATOID ARTHRITIS. THE JBI METHODOLOGY FOR SYSTEMATIC REVIEWS OF EFFECTIVENESS AND THE PREFERRED REPORTING ITEMS FOR SYSTEMATIC REVIEWS AND META-ANALYSES (PRISMA) GUIDELINES WILL BE FOLLOWED. PRISMA FOR SYSTEMATIC REVIEW PROTOCOLS (PRISMA-P) WAS USED TO WRITE THE PROTOCOL. RANDOMISED CONTROLLED TRIALS ASSESSING THE EFFECTIVENESS OF YOGA INTERVENTIONS FOR MANAGING RHEUMATOID ARTHRITIS IN ADULTS WILL BE INCLUDED IN THIS REVIEW. WE AIM TO SEARCH THE FOLLOWING DATABASES TO FIND PUBLISHED AND UNPUBLISHED STUDIES: ABIM, AMED, AYUSH RESEARCH PORTAL, CAM-QUEST, CINAHL, CENTRAL, EMBASE, MEDLINE, PEDRO, PSYCINFO, SPORTDISCUS, TRIP, WEB OF SCIENCE, DART-EUROPE-E-THESES PORTAL, ETHOS, OPENGREY AND PROQUEST DISSERTATIONS AND THESES. NO DATE OR LANGUAGE RESTRICTIONS WILL BE APPLIED. A NARRATIVE SYNTHESIS WILL BE CONDUCTED. META-REGRESSION WILL BE CONDUCTED TO EXPLORE THE STATISTICAL EVIDENCE FOR WHICH COMPONENTS (CONTENT, STRUCTURE AND DELIVERY CHARACTERISTICS) OF YOGA INTERVENTIONS ARE EFFECTIVE. 2022 6 548 24 CONTENT, STRUCTURE, AND DELIVERY CHARACTERISTICS OF YOGA INTERVENTIONS FOR MANAGING HYPERTENSION: A SYSTEMATIC REVIEW PROTOCOL. AIMS: THIS SYSTEMATIC REVIEW AIMS TO SUMMARIZE THE CONTENT, STRUCTURE, AND DELIVERY CHARACTERISTICS OF YOGA INTERVENTIONS USED FOR MANAGING HYPERTENSION. INTRODUCTION: GLOBALLY, HYPERTENSION-RELATED MORBIDITY AND MORTALITY ARE HIGH. YOGA MIGHT BE A POTENTIAL SOLUTION FOR MANAGING HYPERTENSION. SEVERAL SYSTEMATIC REVIEWS HAVE EVALUATED THE EFFECTIVENESS OF YOGA INTERVENTIONS FOR MANAGING HYPERTENSION. THERE IS A NEED TO SUMMARIZE THE CONTENT, STRUCTURE, AND DELIVERY CHARACTERISTICS OF YOGA INTERVENTIONS USED FOR MANAGING HYPERTENSION. INCLUSION CRITERIA: RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED TRIALS ASSESSING THE EFFECTIVENESS OF YOGA INTERVENTIONS FOR MANAGING HYPERTENSION IN ADULTS AND REPORTING EITHER THE CONTENT, STRUCTURE, OR DELIVERY CHARACTERISTICS WILL BE INCLUDED IN THIS SYSTEMATIC REVIEW. METHODS: THE JOANNA BRIGGS INSTITUTE SYSTEMATIC REVIEW METHODOLOGY WILL BE FOLLOWED TO CONDUCT THE REVIEW. WE AIM TO SEARCH FOR A WIDE RANGE OF SOURCES TO FIND BOTH PUBLISHED AND UNPUBLISHED STUDIES. THE FOLLOWING DATABASES WILL BE SEARCHED: MEDLINE, EMBASE, CINAHL, PSYCINFO, ALLIED AND COMPLEMENTARY MEDICINE (AMED), WEB OF SCIENCE, COCHRANE CENTRAL REGISTER OF CONTROLLED TRIALS (CENTRAL), TURNING RESEARCH INTO PRACTICE (TRIP), AYUSH RESEARCH PORTAL, A BIBLIOGRAPHY OF INDIAN MEDICINE (ABIM), DIGITAL HELPLINE FOR AYURVEDA RESEARCH ARTICLES (DHARA), CAM-QUEST, AND DIRECTORY OF OPEN ACCESS JOURNALS (DOAJ). THE SEARCH FOR UNPUBLISHED STUDIES WILL INCLUDE OPENGREY, ETHOS, AND PROQUEST DISSERTATIONS AND THESES. DATABASES WILL BE SEARCHED FROM THEIR INCEPTION DATES, AND NO LANGUAGE RESTRICTIONS WILL BE APPLIED. A NARRATIVE DESCRIPTION OF THE FINDINGS WILL BE WRITTEN, STRUCTURED AROUND THE AIMS OF THIS SYSTEMATIC REVIEW. SYSTEMATIC REVIEW REGISTRATION NUMBER: CRD42019139404. 2020 7 308 32 AN EVIDENCE MAP OF YOGA FOR LOW BACK PAIN. OBJECTIVE: YOGA IS BEING INCREASINGLY STUDIED AS A TREATMENT STRATEGY FOR A VARIETY OF DIFFERENT CLINICAL CONDITIONS, INCLUDING LOW BACK PAIN (LBP). WE SET OUT TO CONDUCT AN EVIDENCE MAP OF YOGA FOR THE TREATMENT, PREVENTION AND RECURRENCE OF ACUTE OR CHRONIC LOW BACK PAIN (CLBP). METHODS: WE SEARCHED MEDLINE, COCHRANE DATABASE OF SYSTEMATIC REVIEWS, EMBASE, ALLIED AND COMPLEMENTARY MEDICINE DATABASE AND CLINICALTRIALS.GOV FOR RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED TRIALS (RCT), SYSTEMATIC REVIEWS OR PLANNED STUDIES ON THE TREATMENT OR PREVENTION OF ACUTE BACK PAIN OR CLBP. TWO INDEPENDENT REVIEWERS SCREENED PAPERS FOR INCLUSION, EXTRACTED DATA AND ASSESSED THE QUALITY OF INCLUDED STUDIES. RESULTS: THREE ELIGIBLE SYSTEMATIC REVIEWS WERE IDENTIFIED THAT INCLUDED 10 RCTS (N=956) THAT EVALUATED YOGA FOR NON-SPECIFIC CLBP. WE DID NOT IDENTIFY ADDITIONAL RCTS BEYOND THOSE INCLUDED IN THE SYSTEMATIC REVIEWS. OUR SEARCH OF CLINICALTRIALS.GOV IDENTIFIED ONE SMALL (N=10) UNPUBLISHED TRIAL AND ONE LARGE (N=320) PLANNED CLINICAL TRIAL. THE MOST RECENT GOOD QUALITY SYSTEMATIC REVIEW INDICATED SIGNIFICANT EFFECTS FOR SHORT- AND LONG-TERM PAIN REDUCTION (N=6 TRIALS; STANDARDIZED MEAN DIFFERENCE [SMD] -0.48; 95% CI, -0.65 TO -0.31; I(2)=0% AND N=5; SMD -0.33; 95% CI, -0.59 TO -0.07; I(2)=48%, RESPECTIVELY). LONG-TERM EFFECTS FOR BACK SPECIFIC DISABILITY WERE ALSO IDENTIFIED (N=5; SMD -0.35; 95% CI, -0.55 TO -0.15; I(2)=20%). NO STUDIES WERE IDENTIFIED EVALUATING YOGA FOR PREVENTION OR TREATMENT OF ACUTE LBP. CONCLUSION: EVIDENCE SUGGESTS BENEFIT OF YOGA IN MIDLIFE ADULTS WITH NON-SPECIFIC CLBP FOR SHORT- AND LONG-TERM PAIN AND BACK-SPECIFIC DISABILITY, BUT THE EFFECTS OF YOGA FOR HEALTH-RELATED QUALITY OF LIFE, WELL- BEING AND ACUTE LBP ARE UNCERTAIN. WITHOUT ADDITIONAL STUDIES, FURTHER SYSTEMATIC REVIEWS ARE UNLIKELY TO BE INFORMATIVE. 2016 8 2121 34 THE EFFECTIVENESS AND CHARACTERISTICS OF PREGNANCY YOGA INTERVENTIONS: A SYSTEMATIC REVIEW PROTOCOL. BACKGROUND: THE PURPOSE OF THIS REVIEW IS TO SYSTEMATICALLY EXAMINE THE REPORTED CLINICAL EFFECTIVENESS OF PREGNANCY YOGA. THE REVIEW WILL USE THE FITT (FREQUENCY, INTENSITY, TIME/DURATION AND TYPE) PRINCIPLE OF PHYSICAL ACTIVITY TO CHARACTERISE THE DIFFERENT TYPES OF YOGA INTERVENTIONS THAT HAVE BEEN EVALUATED IN THE INCLUDED STUDIES. STUDIES WILL BE CATEGORISED AS EFFECTIVENESS OR EFFICACY STUDIES AND THIS CONTINUUM OF EFFICACY VERSUS EFFECTIVENESS WILL BE INCORPORATED INTO THE FULL REVIEW. METHODS/DESIGN: THE FOLLOWING ELECTRONIC DATABASES WILL BE SEARCHED USING A DETAILED SEARCH STRATEGY: MEDLINE, PSYCINFO, EMBASE, CINAHL, WHOLIS, AMED, SCIELO, ASSIA AND WEB OF SCIENCE. RANDOMISED CONTROL TRIALS AND QUASI-EXPERIMENTAL STUDIES EXAMINING PREGNANCY YOGA AND REPORTING ON EFFECT WILL BE INCLUDED. TITLES, ABSTRACTS AND FULL ARTICLES WILL BE SCREENED BY TWO INVESTIGATORS INDEPENDENTLY TO IDENTIFY ELIGIBLE STUDIES. THE COCHRANE COLLABORATION'S RISK OF BIAS ASSESSMENT TOOL WILL BE USED TO ASSESS STUDY QUALITY. QUALITY OF THE EVIDENCE WILL BE EVALUATED USING THE GRADE CRITERIA. A STANDARDISED DATA EXTRACTION FORM WILL BE USED TO EXTRACT DATA. EFFECT SIZES WILL BE ESTIMATED USING MEAN DIFFERENCES FOR CONTINUOUS OUTCOMES, AND RELATIVE RISKS FOR DICHOTOMOUS OUTCOME. WHERE POSSIBLE, POOLING OF EFFECT ESTIMATES WILL BE DONE USING A RANDOM EFFECT MODEL. THE OUTCOMES OF INTEREST ARE QUALITY OF LIFE, STRESS, ANXIETY, DEPRESSION, MODE OF BIRTH, LABOUR DURATION AND PAIN MANAGEMENT IN LABOUR. DISCUSSION: THIS REVIEW WILL SYNTHESISE THE BEST AVAILABLE EVIDENCE ON THE EFFECTIVENESS OF YOGA DURING PREGNANCY AND PROVIDE VALUABLE HIGH-QUALITY INFORMATION FOR CLINICIANS AND HEALTH POLICYMAKERS. FINDINGS WILL BE DISSEMINATED THROUGH PUBLICATION IN A PEER-REVIEWED JOURNAL AND PRESENTATION AT RELEVANT CONFERENCE PROCEEDINGS. THE REVIEW WILL MAKE RECOMMENDATIONS FOR THE APPROPRIATE VOLUME, INTENSITY AND TYPE OF PREGNANCY YOGA FOR MAXIMUM EFFECT AND MAY HAVE IMPLICATIONS FOR POLICY AND PRACTICE RELATING TO PREGNANCY YOGA AS AN INTERVENTION. REGISTRATION: PROSPERO, CRD42019119916. REGISTERED ON 11TH JANUARY 2019. 2019 9 2831 30 YOGA VS. PHYSICAL THERAPY VS. EDUCATION FOR CHRONIC LOW BACK PAIN IN PREDOMINANTLY MINORITY POPULATIONS: STUDY PROTOCOL FOR A RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED TRIAL. BACKGROUND: CHRONIC LOW BACK PAIN CAUSES SUBSTANTIAL MORBIDITY AND COST TO SOCIETY WHILE DISPROPORTIONATELY IMPACTING LOW-INCOME AND MINORITY ADULTS. SEVERAL RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED TRIALS SHOW YOGA IS AN EFFECTIVE TREATMENT. HOWEVER, THE COMPARATIVE EFFECTIVENESS OF YOGA AND PHYSICAL THERAPY, A COMMON MAINSTREAM TREATMENT FOR CHRONIC LOW BACK PAIN, IS UNKNOWN. METHODS/DESIGN: THIS IS A RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED TRIAL FOR 320 PREDOMINANTLY LOW-INCOME MINORITY ADULTS WITH CHRONIC LOW BACK PAIN, COMPARING YOGA, PHYSICAL THERAPY, AND EDUCATION. INCLUSION CRITERIA ARE ADULTS 18-64 YEARS OLD WITH NON-SPECIFIC LOW BACK PAIN LASTING >/= 12 WEEKS AND A SELF-REPORTED AVERAGE PAIN INTENSITY OF >/= 4 ON A 0-10 SCALE. RECRUITMENT TAKES PLACE AT BOSTON MEDICAL CENTER, AN URBAN ACADEMIC SAFETY-NET HOSPITAL AND SEVEN FEDERALLY QUALIFIED COMMUNITY HEALTH CENTERS LOCATED IN DIVERSE NEIGHBORHOODS. THE 52-WEEK STUDY HAS AN INITIAL 12-WEEK TREATMENT PHASE WHERE PARTICIPANTS ARE RANDOMIZED IN A 2:2:1 RATIO INTO I) A STANDARDIZED WEEKLY HATHA YOGA CLASS SUPPLEMENTED BY HOME PRACTICE; II) A STANDARDIZED EVIDENCE-BASED EXERCISE THERAPY PROTOCOL ADAPTED FROM THE TREATMENT BASED CLASSIFICATION METHOD, INDIVIDUALLY DELIVERED BY A PHYSICAL THERAPIST AND SUPPLEMENTED BY HOME PRACTICE; AND III) EDUCATION DELIVERED THROUGH A SELF-CARE BOOK. CO-PRIMARY OUTCOME MEASURES ARE 12-WEEK PAIN INTENSITY MEASURED ON AN 11-POINT NUMERICAL RATING SCALE AND BACK-SPECIFIC FUNCTION MEASURED USING THE MODIFIED ROLAND MORRIS DISABILITY QUESTIONNAIRE. IN THE SUBSEQUENT 40-WEEK MAINTENANCE PHASE, YOGA PARTICIPANTS ARE RE-RANDOMIZED IN A 1:1 RATIO TO EITHER STRUCTURED MAINTENANCE YOGA CLASSES OR HOME PRACTICE ONLY. PHYSICAL THERAPY PARTICIPANTS ARE SIMILARLY RE-RANDOMIZED TO EITHER FIVE BOOSTER SESSIONS OR HOME PRACTICE ONLY. EDUCATION PARTICIPANTS CONTINUE TO FOLLOW RECOMMENDATIONS OF EDUCATIONAL MATERIALS. WE WILL ALSO ASSESS COST EFFECTIVENESS FROM THE PERSPECTIVES OF THE INDIVIDUAL, INSURERS, AND SOCIETY USING CLAIMS DATABASES, ELECTRONIC MEDICAL RECORDS, SELF-REPORT COST DATA, AND STUDY RECORDS. QUALITATIVE DATA FROM INTERVIEWS WILL ADD SUBJECTIVE DETAIL TO COMPLEMENT QUANTITATIVE DATA. TRIAL REGISTRATION: THIS TRIAL IS REGISTERED IN CLINICALTRIALS.GOV, WITH THE ID NUMBER: NCT01343927. 2014 10 477 36 CLINICAL APPLICATIONS OF YOGA FOR THE PEDIATRIC POPULATION: A SYSTEMATIC REVIEW. OBJECTIVE: THE AIM OF THIS STUDY WAS TO EVALUATE THE EVIDENCE FOR CLINICAL APPLICATIONS OF YOGA AMONG THE PEDIATRIC POPULATION. METHODS: WE CONDUCTED AN ELECTRONIC LITERATURE SEARCH INCLUDING CINAHL, COCHRANE CENTRAL REGISTER OF CONTROLLED TRIALS (CENTRAL), EMBASE, MEDLINE, PSYCINFO, AND MANUAL SEARCH OF RETRIEVED ARTICLES FROM INCEPTION OF EACH DATABASE UNTIL DECEMBER 2008. RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED TRIALS (RCTS) AND NONRANDOMIZED CONTROLLED TRIALS (NRCTS) WERE SELECTED THAT INCLUDED YOGA OR YOGA-BASED INTERVENTIONS FOR INDIVIDUALS AGED 0 TO 21 YEARS. DATA WERE EXTRACTED AND ARTICLES CRITICALLY REVIEWED USING A MODIFIED JADAD SCORE AND DESCRIPTIVE METHODOLOGICAL CRITERIA, WITH SUMMARIZATION IN TABLES. RESULTS: THIRTY-FOUR CONTROLLED STUDIES PUBLISHED FROM 1979 TO 2008 WERE IDENTIFIED, WITH 19 RCTS AND 15 NRCTS. MANY STUDIES WERE OF LOW METHODOLOGICAL QUALITY. CLINICAL AREAS FOR WHICH YOGA HAS BEEN STUDIED INCLUDE PHYSICAL FITNESS, CARDIORESPIRATORY EFFECTS, MOTOR SKILLS/STRENGTH, MENTAL HEALTH AND PSYCHOLOGICAL DISORDERS, BEHAVIOR AND DEVELOPMENT, IRRITABLE BOWEL SYNDROME, AND BIRTH OUTCOMES FOLLOWING PRENATAL YOGA. NO ADVERSE EVENTS WERE REPORTED IN TRIALS REVIEWED. ALTHOUGH A LARGE MAJORITY OF STUDIES WERE POSITIVE, METHODOLOGICAL LIMITATIONS SUCH AS RANDOMIZATION METHODS, WITHDRAWAL/DROPOUTS, AND DETAILS OF YOGA INTERVENTION PRECLUDE CONCLUSIVE EVIDENCE. CONCLUSIONS: THERE ARE LIMITED DATA ON THE CLINICAL APPLICATIONS OF YOGA AMONG THE PEDIATRIC POPULATION. MOST PUBLISHED CONTROLLED TRIALS WERE SUGGESTIVE OF BENEFIT, BUT RESULTS ARE PRELIMINARY BASED ON LOW QUANTITY AND QUALITY OF TRIALS. FURTHER RESEARCH OF YOGA FOR CHILDREN BY USING A HIGHER STANDARD OF METHODOLOGY AND REPORTING IS WARRANTED. 2009 11 541 26 COMPONENTS AND REPORTING OF YOGA INTERVENTIONS FOR MUSCULOSKELETAL CONDITIONS: A SYSTEMATIC REVIEW OF RANDOMISED CONTROLLED TRIALS. OBJECTIVES: TO IDENTIFY THE CONTENT AND REPORTING DETAILS OF RANDOMISED CONTROLLED TRIALS OF YOGA FOR MUSCULOSKELETAL CONDITIONS THROUGH A SYSTEMATIC REVIEW OF THE LITERATURE. DESIGN: TWENTY ELECTRONIC DATABASES WERE SEARCHED TO IDENTIFY RANDOMISED CONTROLLED TRIALS (RCTS) OF YOGA INTERVENTIONS FOR MUSCULOSKELETAL CONDITIONS. ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA WERE FULL-TEXT, PEER REVIEWED ARTICLES, OF RCTS WITH YOGA AS A PRIMARY INTERVENTION, ON A POPULATION AGED 18 YEARS AND OVER, WITH A CLINICAL DIAGNOSIS OF A MUSCULOSKELETAL CONDITION. DATA RELATING TO STUDY CHARACTERISTICS, YOGA STYLES, YOGA PRACTICES, HOME PRACTICE, AND REPORTING WERE EXTRACTED AND SUMMARISED. RESULTS: SEVENTEEN ARTICLES MET INCLUSION CRITERIA, REPRESENTING FIVE MUSCULOSKELETAL CONDITIONS: LOW BACK PAIN, OSTEOARTHRITIS, RHEUMATOID ARTHRITIS, KYPHOSIS, AND FIBROMYALGIA. 15 STUDIES WERE NON-RESIDENTIAL, AND TWO WERE RESIDENTIAL. STUDY DURATION RANGED FROM 1 TO 24 WEEKS; WEEKLY DOSAGE OF YOGA RANGED FROM 1 TO 56H. FIVE STYLES OF POSTURE-BASED HATHA YOGA WERE SPECIFIED. INTERVENTION CONTENT INCLUDED SEVEN YOGA PRACTISES: POSTURES, BREATHING, RELAXATION, MEDITATION, PHILOSOPHY, CHANTING, AND CLEANSING PRACTISES. TEN STUDIES EITHER ENCOURAGED OR REQUESTED HOME PRACTICE. REPORTING DETAILS INCLUDED CLASS PLANS, POSTURE LISTS, AND DIAGRAMS. DUE TO INSUFFICIENT DETAIL REGARDING DELIVERY OF THE YOGA INTERVENTION ONLY EIGHT OF THE 17 INTERVENTIONS WERE CONSIDERED REPLICABLE AS REPORTED. CONCLUSIONS: EVALUATION OF STUDY CHARACTERISTICS AND YOGA COMPONENTS INDICATED SEVERAL AREAS OF HOMOGENEITY ACROSS STUDIES, SUGGESTING AN EXISTING DEGREE OF STANDARDISATION. HOWEVER, HETEROGENEITY RELATED TO INTERVENTION CONTENT AND REPORTING IMPEDED DETERMINATION OF INTERVENTION CONTENT AND DELIVERY. STANDARDISATION OF CONTENT, NOMENCLATURE, AND REPORTING DETAILS IS RECOMMENDED TO ENHANCE PROTOCOL TRANSPARENCY, REPLICATION, AND COMPARISON OF INTERVENTION EFFECTIVENESS. 2014 12 2130 34 THE EFFECTIVENESS OF YOGA TO PREVENT DIABETES MELLITUS TYPE 2: A PROTOCOL FOR SYSTEMATIC REVIEW AND META-ANALYSIS. BACKGROUND: TYPE 2 DIABETES MELLITUS (T2DM) IS BECOMING A LEADING PROBLEM WORLDWIDE. EMERGING REPORTS REVEAL ALARMING EVIDENCE OF INCREASING PREVALENCE OF T2DM THAT HAS REACHED PANDEMIC LEVELS. DESPITE THE SIGNIFICANT INCIDENCE, THERE ARE LIMITED RELIABLE DATA RESOURCES AND COMPREHENSIVE SYSTEMATIC REVIEW AND META-ANALYSIS ON THE EFFECTS OF YOGA ON PEOPLE WHO ARE A PREDIABETIC OR HIGH RISK FOR DEVELOPING T2DM. OBJECTIVE: THE OBJECTIVE OF THIS PROTOCOL IS TO CONDUCT A FULL-SCALE SYSTEMATIC REVIEW AND META-ANALYSES ON THE EFFECTS OF YOGA ON PEOPLE WHO ARE PREDIABETES OR HIGH RISK OF DEVELOPING T2DM. METHODS: THE ARTICLES ENROLLED IN THE STUDY WILL BE RETRIEVED FROM THE ONLINE DATABASES BETWEEN 2002 AND THE DATE THE SEARCHES ARE EXECUTED. THE SEARCHES WILL BE REPEATED JUST BEFORE THE FINAL ANALYSES AND FURTHER RELEVANT STUDIES FOR INCLUSION. WE WILL CONDUCT A BIBLIOGRAPHIC SEARCH IN DATABASES: MEDLINE/PUBMED, SCOPUS, COCHRANE LIBRARY, EBSCO, AND INDMED USING KEYWORDS INCLUDING PREDIABETES STATE, HIGH RISK FOR DIABETES, METABOLIC SYNDROME, AND YOGA. A DEFINED SEARCH STRATEGY WILL BE IMPLEMENTED ALONG WITH SELECTION CRITERIA TO OBTAIN FULL-TEXT ARTICLES OF RELEVANT STUDIES. THIS STUDY PROTOCOL WAS PREPARED ACCORDING TO THE PREFERRED REPORTING ITEMS FOR SYSTEMATIC REVIEWS AND META-ANALYSIS FOR PROTOCOLS 2015 GUIDELINES. THERE WILL BE NO LANGUAGE RESTRICTIONS. ETHICS AND DISSEMINATION: THE PROPOSED STUDY WILL BE BASED ON PUBLISHED STUDIES AND PUBLICLY AVAILABLE ANONYMIZED DATA WITHOUT DIRECTLY INVOLVING HUMAN PARTICIPANTS AND THEREFORE REQUIRES NEITHER FORMAL HUMAN ETHICAL REVIEW NOR APPROVAL BY A HUMAN RESEARCH ETHICS COMMITTEE. WE PUBLISHED AN OUTLINE OF THE PROTOCOL IN THE INTERNATIONAL PROSPECTIVE REGISTER OF SYSTEMATIC REVIEWS (PROSPERO) IN 2018. WE PLAN TO DISSEMINATE THE FINDINGS OF THIS SYSTEMATIC REVIEW AND META-ANALYSIS THROUGH PUBLICATION IN A PEER-REVIEWED JOURNAL AND PRESENTATION AT RELEVANT CONFERENCE PROCEEDINGS. IN ADDITION, WE BELIEVE THE RESULTS OF THE SYSTEMATIC REVIEW WILL HAVE IMPLICATIONS FOR POLICY AND PRACTICE. WE WILL PREPARE POLICYMAKER SUMMARY USING A VALIDATED FORMAT, DISSEMINATE THROUGH SOCIAL MEDIA AND EMAIL DISCUSSION GROUPS. REVIEW REGISTRATION NUMBER: PROSPERO REGISTRATION NUMBER CRD 42018106657. 2019 13 1689 27 OVERVIEW OF SYSTEMATIC REVIEWS: YOGA AS A THERAPEUTIC INTERVENTION FOR ADULTS WITH ACUTE AND CHRONIC HEALTH CONDITIONS. OBJECTIVES. OVERVIEW THE QUALITY, DIRECTION, AND CHARACTERISTICS OF YOGA INTERVENTIONS FOR TREATMENT OF ACUTE AND CHRONIC HEALTH CONDITIONS IN ADULT POPULATIONS. METHODS. WE SEARCHED FOR SYSTEMATIC REVIEWS IN 10 ONLINE DATABASES, BIBLIOGRAPHIC REFERENCES, AND HAND-SEARCHES IN YOGA-RELATED JOURNALS. INCLUDED REVIEWS SATISFY OXMAN CRITERIA AND SPECIFY YOGA AS A PRIMARY INTERVENTION IN ONE OR MORE RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED TRIALS FOR TREATMENT IN ADULTS. THE AMSTAR TOOL AND GRADE APPROACH EVALUATED THE METHODOLOGICAL QUALITY OF REVIEWS AND QUALITY OF EVIDENCE. RESULTS. WE IDENTIFIED 2202 TITLES, OF WHICH 41 FULL-TEXT ARTICLES WERE ASSESSED FOR ELIGIBILITY AND 26 SYSTEMATIC REVIEWS SATISFIED INCLUSION CRITERIA. THIRTEEN SYSTEMATIC REVIEWS INCLUDE QUANTITATIVE DATA AND SIX PAPERS INCLUDE META-ANALYSIS. THE QUALITY OF EVIDENCE IS GENERALLY LOW. SIXTEEN DIFFERENT TYPES OF HEALTH CONDITIONS ARE INCLUDED. ELEVEN REVIEWS SHOW TENDENCY TOWARDS POSITIVE EFFECTS OF YOGA INTERVENTION, 15 REVIEWS REPORT UNCLEAR RESULTS, AND NO, REVIEWS REPORT ADVERSE EFFECTS OF YOGA. YOGA APPEARS MOST EFFECTIVE FOR REDUCING SYMPTOMS IN ANXIETY, DEPRESSION, AND PAIN. CONCLUSION. ALTHOUGH THE QUALITY OF SYSTEMATIC REVIEWS IS HIGH, THE QUALITY OF SUPPORTING EVIDENCE IS LOW. SIGNIFICANT HETEROGENEITY AND VARIABILITY IN REPORTING INTERVENTIONS BY TYPE OF YOGA, SETTINGS, AND POPULATION CHARACTERISTICS LIMIT THE GENERALIZABILITY OF RESULTS. 2013 14 2465 31 YOGA AS A THERAPEUTIC INTERVENTION: A BIBLIOMETRIC ANALYSIS OF PUBLISHED RESEARCH STUDIES FROM 1967 TO 2013. OBJECTIVE: A COMPREHENSIVE BIBLIOMETRIC ANALYSIS WAS CONDUCTED ON PUBLICATIONS FOR YOGA THERAPY RESEARCH IN CLINICAL POPULATIONS. METHODS: MAJOR ELECTRONIC DATABASES WERE SEARCHED FOR ARTICLES IN ALL LANGUAGES PUBLISHED BETWEEN 1967 AND 2013. DATABASES INCLUDED PUBMED, PSYCHINFO, MEDLINE, INDMED, INDIAN CITATION INDEX, INDEX MEDICUS FOR SOUTH-EAST ASIA REGION, WEB OF KNOWLEDGE, EMBASE, EBSCO, AND GOOGLE SCHOLAR. NONINDEXED JOURNALS WERE SEARCHED MANUALLY. KEY SEARCH WORDS INCLUDED YOGA, YOGA THERAPY, PRANAYAMA, ASANA. ALL STUDIES MET THE DEFINITION OF A CLINICAL TRIAL. ALL STYLES OF YOGA WERE INCLUDED. THE AUTHORS EXTRACTED THE DATA. RESULTS: A TOTAL OF 486 ARTICLES MET THE INCLUSION CRITERIA AND WERE PUBLISHED IN 217 DIFFERENT PEER-REVIEWED JOURNALS FROM 29 DIFFERENT COUNTRIES ON 28,080 STUDY PARTICIPANTS. THE PRIMARY RESULT OBSERVED IS THE THREE-FOLD INCREASE IN NUMBER OF PUBLICATIONS SEEN IN THE LAST 10 YEARS, INCLUSIVE OF ALL STUDY DESIGNS. OVERALL, 45% OF THE STUDIES PUBLISHED WERE RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED TRIALS, 18% WERE CONTROLLED STUDIES, AND 37% WERE UNCONTROLLED STUDIES. MOST PUBLICATIONS ORIGINATED FROM INDIA (N=258), FOLLOWED BY THE UNITED STATES (N=122) AND CANADA (N=13). THE TOP THREE DISORDERS ADDRESSED BY YOGA INTERVENTIONS WERE MENTAL HEALTH, CARDIOVASCULAR DISEASE, AND RESPIRATORY DISEASE. CONCLUSION: A SURGE IN PUBLICATIONS ON YOGA TO MITIGATE DISEASE-RELATED SYMPTOMS IN CLINICAL POPULATIONS HAS OCCURRED DESPITE CHALLENGES FACING THE FIELD OF YOGA RESEARCH, WHICH INCLUDE STANDARDIZATION AND LIMITATIONS IN FUNDING, TIME, AND RESOURCES. THE POPULATION AT LARGE HAS OBSERVED A PARALLEL SURGE IN THE USE OF YOGA OUTSIDE OF CLINICAL PRACTICE. THE USE OF YOGA AS A COMPLEMENTARY THERAPY IN CLINICAL PRACTICE MAY LEAD TO HEALTH BENEFITS BEYOND TRADITIONAL TREATMENT ALONE; HOWEVER, TO EFFECT CHANGES IN HEALTH CARE POLICY, MORE HIGH-QUALITY, EVIDENCE-BASED RESEARCH IS NEEDED. 2015 15 2852 35 YOGA, PHYSICAL THERAPY, OR EDUCATION FOR CHRONIC LOW BACK PAIN: A RANDOMIZED NONINFERIORITY TRIAL. BACKGROUND: YOGA IS EFFECTIVE FOR MILD TO MODERATE CHRONIC LOW BACK PAIN (CLBP), BUT ITS COMPARATIVE EFFECTIVENESS WITH PHYSICAL THERAPY (PT) IS UNKNOWN. MOREOVER, LITTLE IS KNOWN ABOUT YOGA'S EFFECTIVENESS IN UNDERSERVED PATIENTS WITH MORE SEVERE FUNCTIONAL DISABILITY AND PAIN. OBJECTIVE: TO DETERMINE WHETHER YOGA IS NONINFERIOR TO PT FOR CLBP. DESIGN: 12-WEEK, SINGLE-BLIND, 3-GROUP RANDOMIZED NONINFERIORITY TRIAL AND SUBSEQUENT 40-WEEK MAINTENANCE PHASE. (CLINICALTRIALS.GOV: NCT01343927). SETTING: ACADEMIC SAFETY-NET HOSPITAL AND 7 AFFILIATED COMMUNITY HEALTH CENTERS. PARTICIPANTS: 320 PREDOMINANTLY LOW-INCOME, RACIALLY DIVERSE ADULTS WITH NONSPECIFIC CLBP. INTERVENTION: PARTICIPANTS RECEIVED 12 WEEKLY YOGA CLASSES, 15 PT VISITS, OR AN EDUCATIONAL BOOK AND NEWSLETTERS. THE MAINTENANCE PHASE COMPARED YOGA DROP-IN CLASSES VERSUS HOME PRACTICE AND PT BOOSTER SESSIONS VERSUS HOME PRACTICE. MEASUREMENTS: PRIMARY OUTCOMES WERE BACK-RELATED FUNCTION, MEASURED BY THE ROLAND MORRIS DISABILITY QUESTIONNAIRE (RMDQ), AND PAIN, MEASURED BY AN 11-POINT SCALE, AT 12 WEEKS. PRESPECIFIED NONINFERIORITY MARGINS WERE 1.5 (RMDQ) AND 1.0 (PAIN). SECONDARY OUTCOMES INCLUDED PAIN MEDICATION USE, GLOBAL IMPROVEMENT, SATISFACTION WITH INTERVENTION, AND HEALTH-RELATED QUALITY OF LIFE. RESULTS: ONE-SIDED 95% LOWER CONFIDENCE LIMITS WERE 0.83 (RMDQ) AND 0.97 (PAIN), DEMONSTRATING NONINFERIORITY OF YOGA TO PT. HOWEVER, YOGA WAS NOT SUPERIOR TO EDUCATION FOR EITHER OUTCOME. YOGA AND PT WERE SIMILAR FOR MOST SECONDARY OUTCOMES. YOGA AND PT PARTICIPANTS WERE 21 AND 22 PERCENTAGE POINTS LESS LIKELY, RESPECTIVELY, THAN EDUCATION PARTICIPANTS TO USE PAIN MEDICATION AT 12 WEEKS. IMPROVEMENTS IN YOGA AND PT GROUPS WERE MAINTAINED AT 1 YEAR WITH NO DIFFERENCES BETWEEN MAINTENANCE STRATEGIES. FREQUENCY OF ADVERSE EVENTS, MOSTLY MILD SELF-LIMITED JOINT AND BACK PAIN, DID NOT DIFFER BETWEEN THE YOGA AND PT GROUPS. LIMITATIONS: PARTICIPANTS WERE NOT BLINDED TO TREATMENT ASSIGNMENT. THE PT GROUP HAD DISPROPORTIONATE LOSS TO FOLLOW-UP. CONCLUSION: A MANUALIZED YOGA PROGRAM FOR NONSPECIFIC CLBP WAS NONINFERIOR TO PT FOR FUNCTION AND PAIN. PRIMARY FUNDING SOURCE: NATIONAL CENTER FOR COMPLEMENTARY AND INTEGRATIVE HEALTH OF THE NATIONAL INSTITUTES OF HEALTH. 2017 16 2124 21 THE EFFECTIVENESS OF PRENATAL YOGA ON DELIVERY OUTCOMES: A META-ANALYSIS. BACKGROUND: THE EFFICACY OF YOGA ON DELIVERY OUTCOMES REMAINING CONTROVERSY. OBJECTIVES: TO EVALUATE THE EFFECTS OF PRENATAL YOGA ON DELIVERY OUTCOMES. METHODS: THE COCHRANE LIBRARY, PUBMED, EMBASE, WEB OF SCIENCE, CINAHL AND ELSEVIER DATABASES WERE SEARCHED FROM INCEPTION TO JANUARY 22, 2020, AND RANDOMIZED, QUASI-RANDOMIZED AND NON-RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED TRIALS EVALUATING THE EFFECT OF YOGA ON THE DELIVERY OUTCOMES IN PREGNANT WOMEN WERE INCLUDED. THE METHODOLOGICAL QUALITY WAS ASSESSED BY THE COCHRANE COLLABORATION'S TOOL. META-ANALYSIS WAS PERFORMED USING REVMAN 5.3. RESULTS: THIS META-ANALYSIS IDENTIFIED THAT YOGA IMPROVED VAGINAL DELIVERY, DECREASED PREMATURE DELIVERY AND BIRTH WEIGHT OF NEWBORNS, SHORTEN THE LABOR DURATION. CONCLUSION: PRENATAL YOGA IS AN EFFECTIVE COMPLEMENTARY MEDICINE TO IMPROVE DELIVERY OUTCOMES AND NOT TO INCREASE THE RISK OF FETUS, WHICH IS WORTH RECOMMENDING TO PREGNANT WOMEN. BUT STUDIES INVOLVED IN THIS META-ANALYSIS WERE NOT ALL OF HIGH QUALITY. THE REGISTRATION NUMBER IN PROSPERO IS CRD42019132490. 2020 17 2427 20 YOGA AND OTHER MEDITATIVE MOVEMENT THERAPIES TO REDUCE CHRONIC PAIN. CLINICAL QUESTION: IN ADULTS WITH CHRONIC PAIN, DO YOGA AND OTHER MEDITATIVE MOVEMENT THERAPIES TO IMPROVEMENT IN CHRONIC PAIN SYMPTOMS? ANSWER: YES. HOWEVER, IN EACH OF THE STUDIES REVIEWED, YOGA CLASSES WERE INCLUDED AS PART OF THE PAIN MANAGEMENT REGIME, SOMETIMES ALONE AND SOMETIMES IN TANDEM WITH DVDS OR AUDIOTAPES. WE FEEL THAT NO EXERCISE THERAPY PROGRAM SHOULD BE UNDERTAKEN WITHOUT PROFESSIONAL COACHING FROM CERTIFIED, REGISTERED AND QUALIFIED INSTRUCTORS. DATE ANSWER WAS DETERMINED: AUGUST 2014, JUNE, 2015, AUGUST 2015. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE FOR THE ANSWER: A. SEARCH TERMS: CHRONIC PAIN, YOGA, EXERCISE THERAPY, MEDITATIVE MOVEMENT THERAPY. INCLUSION CRITERIA: ADULTS; META-ANALYSES; SYSTEMATIC REVIEWS; COHORT STUDIES; RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED TRIALS; PRACTICE GUIDELINES; ARTICLES FROM 2010 TO PRESENT. EXCLUSION CRITERIA: CHILDREN YOUNGER THAN 18 YEARS OF AGE, PILATES. 2017 18 2569 35 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 19 222 29 A SYSTEMATIC REVIEW AND META-ANALYSIS OF YOGA FOR LOW BACK PAIN. OBJECTIVES: TO SYSTEMATICALLY REVIEW AND META-ANALYZE THE EFFECTIVENESS OF YOGA FOR LOW BACK PAIN. METHODS: MEDLINE, THE COCHRANE LIBRARY, EMBASE, CAMBASE, AND PSYCINFO, WERE SCREENED THROUGH JANUARY 2012. RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED TRIALS COMPARING YOGA TO CONTROL CONDITIONS IN PATIENTS WITH LOW BACK PAIN WERE INCLUDED. TWO AUTHORS INDEPENDENTLY ASSESSED RISK OF BIAS USING THE RISK OF BIAS TOOL RECOMMENDED BY THE COCHRANE BACK REVIEW GROUP. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES WERE PAIN, BACK-SPECIFIC DISABILITY, GENERIC DISABILITY, HEALTH-RELATED QUALITY OF LIFE, AND GLOBAL IMPROVEMENT. FOR EACH OUTCOME, STANDARDIZED MEAN DIFFERENCES (SMD) AND 95% CONFIDENCE INTERVALS (CI) WERE CALCULATED. RESULTS: TEN RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED TRIALS WITH A TOTAL OF 967 CHRONIC LOW BACK PAIN PATIENTS WERE INCLUDED. EIGHT STUDIES HAD LOW RISK OF BIAS. THERE WAS STRONG EVIDENCE FOR SHORT-TERM EFFECTS ON PAIN (SMD=-0.48; 95% CI, -0.65 TO -0.31; P<0.01), BACK-SPECIFIC DISABILITY (SMD=-0.59; 95% CI, -0.87 TO -0.30; P<0.01), AND GLOBAL IMPROVEMENT (RISK RATIO=3.27; 95% CI, 1.89-5.66; P<0.01). THERE WAS STRONG EVIDENCE FOR A LONG-TERM EFFECT ON PAIN (SMD=-0.33; 95% CI, -0.59 TO -0.07; P=0.01) AND MODERATE EVIDENCE FOR A LONG-TERM EFFECT ON BACK-SPECIFIC DISABILITY (SMD=-0.35; 95% CI, -0.55 TO -0.15; P<0.01). THERE WAS NO EVIDENCE FOR EITHER SHORT-TERM OR LONG-TERM EFFECTS ON HEALTH-RELATED QUALITY OF LIFE. YOGA WAS NOT ASSOCIATED WITH SERIOUS ADVERSE EVENTS. DISCUSSION: THIS SYSTEMATIC REVIEW FOUND STRONG EVIDENCE FOR SHORT-TERM EFFECTIVENESS AND MODERATE EVIDENCE FOR LONG-TERM EFFECTIVENESS OF YOGA FOR CHRONIC LOW BACK PAIN IN THE MOST IMPORTANT PATIENT-CENTERED OUTCOMES. YOGA CAN BE RECOMMENDED AS AN ADDITIONAL THERAPY TO CHRONIC LOW BACK PAIN PATIENTS. 2013 20 1064 25 EFFECTS OF YOGA ON IMMUNE FUNCTION: A SYSTEMATIC REVIEW OF RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED TRIALS. OBJECTIVE: THIS SYSTEMATIC REVIEW ATTEMPTS TO CONFIRM THE ADDED EVIDENCE TO ASSESS THE EFFECT OF YOGA ON IMMUNE FUNCTION. METHODS: THE COCHRANE LIBRARY, EMBASE, PSYCINFO, PUBMED, AND WEB OF SCIENCE ELECTRONIC DATABASES WERE SEARCHED ACCORDING TO THE PRISRMA METHOD TO IDENTIFY RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED TRIALS (RCTS) ON THE IMMUNOLOGICAL EFFECTS OF YOGA PUBLISHED IN THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE FROM JANUARY 1, 2017, TO DECEMBER 31, 2020. THIS REVIEW COULD ONLY BE DESCRIPTIVELY SUMMARIZED BECAUSE OF HETEROGENEITY OF THE INCLUDED RCTS. RESULTS: ELEVEN POTENTIAL TRIALS WERE IDENTIFIED AND INCLUDED IN THIS REVIEW. QUALITY APPRAISAL OF INCLUDED TRIALS RANGED FROM 3 FOR UNCLEAR RISK OF BIAS AND 8 FOR HIGH RISK OF BIAS. THERE IS EVIDENCE FROM 11 RCTS THAT YOGA MAY HAVE FAVORABLE EFFECTS FOR REDUCING THE LEVELS OF ANTI-INFLAMMATORY MARKERS. CONCLUSIONS: YOGA MAY BE USED AS A COMPLEMENTARY INTERVENTION FOR CLINICAL POPULATIONS OR HEALTHY INDIVIDUALS. 2021