1 855 131 EFFECT OF YOGA ON THE QUALITY OF LIFE OF NURSES WORKING IN INTENSIVE CARE UNITS. RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED CLINICAL TRIAL. OBJECTIVES: THE WORK, HEREIN, SOUGHT TO DETERMINE THE EFFECT OF YOGA ON THE QUALITY OF LIFE OF NURSES WORKING IN INTENSIVE CARE UNITS (ICU). METHODS: THIS WAS A RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED CLINICAL TRIAL OF A PREVENTIVE INTERVENTION OF THREE WEEKLY SESSIONS OF YOGA EXERCISES, WHICH INCLUDED ASPECTS OF MEDITATION, BREATHING CONTROL, AND SLOW BODY MOVEMENTS. THE STUDY SELECTED 70 NURSES WORKING IN ICU AND ASSIGNED THEM TO TWO GROUPS: EXPERIMENTAL (N = 35) AND CONTROL (N = 35). THE WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION QUALITY OF LIFE BRIEF QUESTIONNAIRE (WHOQOL-BREF) WAS USED TO EVALUATE ON FOUR MOMENTS (BASELINE, ONE, TWO, SIX MONTHS AFTER THE START OF THE STUDY); THIS SCALE HAS 26 ITEMS WITH LIKERT-TYPE RESPONSE OPTIONS RANGING FROM 1 TO 5; HIGHER TOTAL SCORE INDICATES BETTER QUALITY OF LIFE. RESULTS: THE BASELINE SCORE OF QUALITY OF LIFE IN THE EXPERIMENTAL GROUP WAS 62.3, WHICH INCREASED TO 70.7 ON THE FIRST MONTH AND CONTINUED IMPROVING IN THE EVALUATIONS ON THE SECOND MONTH (72.8) AND SIXTH MONTH (74.1), WITH THIS CHANGE BEING STATISTICALLY SIGNIFICANT. INSTEAD, THE CONTROL GROUP SHOWED NO DIFFERENCES IN SCORES OF THE DIFFERENT MOMENTS OF EVALUATION (BASELINE = 62, FIRST MONTH = 61.9, SECOND MONTH = 62.4, AND SIXTH MONTH = 60.4). IN THE FOUR DOMAINS OF THE WHOQOL-BREF (PHYSICAL, PSYCHOLOGICAL, SOCIAL RELATIONSHIPS, AND ENVIRONMENT), IT WAS ALSO NOTED THAT THE EXPERIMENTAL GROUP OBTAINED BETTER SCORES OVER TIME COMPARED WITH THE CONTROL GROUP. CONCLUSIONS: THE INTERVENTION OF YOGA EXERCISES WAS EFFECTIVE IN IMPROVING THE QUALITY OF LIFE OF NURSES WORKING IN ICU. 2019 2 2102 40 THE EFFECT OF YOGA ON COPING STRATEGIES AMONG INTENSIVE CARE UNIT NURSES. INTRODUCTION: NOWADAYS, IT HAS BEEN KNOWN THAT INDIVIDUALS HANDLE COPING STRATEGIES WHEN FACED WITH STRESSFUL EVENTS. THESE STRATEGIES PLAY AN IMPORTANT ROLE IN INDIVIDUALS. NURSES ARE EXPOSED TO HIGH STRESS, WHICH DIRECTLY AFFECTS THEIR JOB SATISFACTION AND THE QUALITY OF THEIR SERVICES. THEREFORE, THE PRESENT STUDY TRIED TO INVESTIGATE THE EFFECT OF YOGA ON STRESS COPING STRATEGIES AMONG NURSES WORKING IN INTENSIVE CARE UNITS (ICUS). MATERIALS AND METHODS: IN THIS QUASI-EXPERIMENTAL STUDY, 34 FEMALE NURSES WORKING IN ICU WHO WERE QUALIFIED TO ENTER THE STUDY WERE SELECTED. YOGA EXERCISES WERE ADMINISTRATED TWO SESSIONS A WEEK FOR 8 WEEKS IN THE STUDY GROUP. CS-R QUESTIONNAIRE WAS FILLED BEFORE AND AFTER INTERVENTION. THE DATA WERE ANALYZED BY DESCRIPTIVE AND INFERENTIAL (T TEST) STATISTICAL TESTS. RESULTS: THE RESULTS OF STATISTICAL TESTS SHOWED THAT THE HIGHEST APPLICATION OF STRESS COPING STRATEGIES WAS FOR INCONSISTENT STRESS COPING STRATEGY. THERE WAS A SIGNIFICANT DIFFERENCE IN THE MEAN SCORES OF COPING STRATEGIES OF STRESS FOCUS, EMOTION FOCUS, AND INEFFECTIVENESS AFTER YOGA EXERCISES COMPARED WITH THOSE BEFORE THE YOGA SESSIONS. DISCUSSION: WITH REGARD TO THE FINDINGS, 8 WEEKS EXERCISES OF YOGA CAN BE CONSIDERED AS A COMPLEMENTARY TREATMENT TO AMEND STRESS COPING STRATEGIES. FURTHER STUDIES IN THIS FIELD ARE SUGGESTED. 2012 3 2136 37 THE EFFECTS OF ACUPRESSURE AND YOGA FOR COPING WITH PREMENSTRUAL SYNDROMES ON PREMENSTRUAL SYMPTOMS AND QUALITY OF LIFE. OBJECTIVE: THIS STUDY AIMS TO IDENTIFY THE EFFECTS OF ACUPRESSURE AND YOGA FOR COPING WITH PREMENSTRUAL SYNDROMES (PMS) ON THE PREMENSTRUAL SYMPTOMS AND QUALITY OF LIFE. METHODS: THIS STUDY ADOPTED A RANDOMIZED INTERVENTION DESIGN WITH A PRETEST-POSTTEST CONTROL GROUP. THE SAMPLE CONSISTED OF 155 STUDENTS WITH PMS COMPLAINTS (50 IN YOGA, 51 IN ACUPRESSURE, AND 54 IN CONTROL GROUP). THE STUDENTS IN THE INTERVENTION GROUPS DID YOGA AND RECEIVED ACUPRESSURE THROUGHOUT 12 WEEKS. RESULTS: IT WAS FOUND THAT THE PREMENSTRUAL SYNDROME SCALE POSTTEST MEAN SCORE OF THE STUDENTS WAS LOWER, AND THE PHYSICAL HEALTH, PSYCHOLOGICAL HEALTH, AND ENVIRONMENT SUB-SCALE MEAN SCORES OF THE WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION QUALITY OF LIFE QUESTIONNAIRE WERE HIGHER IN THE YOGA GROUP IN COMPARISON TO THE OTHER GROUPS (P < 0.05). CONCLUSION: YOGA WAS FOUND TO BE A MORE EFFECTIVE NON-PHARMACOLOGICAL METHOD FOR COPING WITH PREMENSTRUAL SYMPTOMS. 2021 4 589 29 DETERMINING THE EFFECT OF YOGA ON JOB SATISFACTION AND BURNOUT OF NURSE ACADEMICIANS. PURPOSE: THIS STUDY WAS CONDUCTED TO DETERMINE THE EFFECT OF YOGA ON BURNOUT AND JOB SATISFACTION OF NURSING ACADEMICIANS. DESIGN AND METHODS: THE RESEARCH IS AN EXPERIMENTAL CLINICAL TRIAL CONDUCTED AS PRETEST-POSTTEST WITH CONTROL GROUPS BETWEEN MARCH AND AUGUST 2019 IN A NURSING FACULTY. PARTICIPANTS IN THE EXPERIMENTAL GROUP WERE GIVEN YOGA PRACTICE (N = 33) TWICE A WEEK FOR 8 WEEKS. DATA WERE COLLECTED BY USING MBI AND MSQ. FINDINGS: THE EXPERIMENTAL GROUP'S MEAN POSTTEST PERSONAL ACHIEVEMENT, EXTRINSIC SATISFACTION AND GENERAL SATISFACTION SCORES WERE HIGHER THAN THAT OF CONTROL GROUP PARTICIPANTS, AND A HIGHLY SIGNIFICANT DIFFERENCE WAS FOUND BETWEEN THE GROUPS. PRACTICE IMPLICATIONS: YOGA PRACTICE IS EFFECTIVE IN REDUCING THE BURNOUT AND INCREASING JOB SATISFACTION OF NURSING ACADEMICIANS. 2022 5 163 47 A RANDOMIZED CONTROL TRIAL OF THE EFFECT OF YOGA ON GUNAS (PERSONALITY) AND HEALTH IN NORMAL HEALTHY VOLUNTEERS. OBJECTIVE: TO STUDY THE EFFICACY OF YOGA ON GUNA (YOGIC PERSONALITY MEASURE) AND GENERAL HEALTH IN NORMAL ADULTS. METHODS: OF THE 1228 PERSONS WHO ATTENDED INTRODUCTORY LECTURES, 226 SUBJECTS AGED 18-71 YEARS, OF BOTH SEXES, WHO SATISFIED THE INCLUSION AND EXCLUSION CRITERIA AND WHO CONSENTED TO PARTICIPATE IN THE STUDY WERE RANDOMLY ALLOCATED INTO TWO GROUPS. THE YOGA(Y) GROUP PRACTISED AN INTEGRATED YOGA MODULE THAT INCLUDED ASANAS, PRANAYAMA, MEDITATION, NOTIONAL CORRECTION AND DEVOTIONAL SESSIONS. THE CONTROL GROUP PRACTISED MILD TO MODERATE PHYSICAL EXERCISES (PE). BOTH GROUPS HAD SUPERVISED PRACTICE SESSIONS (BY TRAINED EXPERTS) FOR ONE HOUR DAILY, SIX DAYS A WEEK FOR EIGHT WEEKS. GUNA (YOGIC PERSONALITY) WAS ASSESSED BEFORE AND AFTER EIGHT WEEKS USING THE SELF-ADMINISTERED VEDIC PERSONALITY INVENTORY (VPI) WHICH ASSESSES SATTVA (GENTLE AND CONTROLLED), RAJAS (VIOLENT AND UNCONTROLLED) AND TAMAS (DULL AND UNCONTROLLED). THE GENERAL HEALTH STATUS (TOTAL HEALTH), WHICH INCLUDES FOUR DOMAINS NAMELY SOMATIC SYMPTOMS (SS), ANXIETY AND INSOMNIA (AI), SOCIAL DYSFUNCTION (SF) AND SEVERE DEPRESSION (SP), WAS ASSESSED USING A GENERAL HEALTH QUESTIONNAIRE (GHQ). RESULTS: BASELINE SCORES FOR ALL THE DOMAINS FOR BOTH THE GROUPS DID NOT DIFFER SIGNIFICANTLY (P > 0.05, INDEPENDENT SAMPLES T TEST). SATTVA SHOWED A SIGNIFICANT DIFFERENCE WITHIN THE GROUPS AND THE EFFECT SIZE WAS MORE IN THE Y THAN IN THE PE GROUP. RAJAS SHOWED A SIGNIFICANT DECREASE WITHIN AND BETWEEN THE GROUPS WITH A HIGHER EFFECT SIZE IN THE PE GROUP. TAMAS SHOWED SIGNIFICANT REDUCTION WITHIN THE PE GROUP ONLY. THE GHQ REVEALED THAT THERE WAS SIGNIFICANT DECREASE IN SS, AI, SF AND SP IN BOTH Y AND PE GROUPS (WILCOXCON SINGED RANK T TEST). SS SHOWED A SIGNIFICANT DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THE GROUPS (MANN WHITNEY U TEST). CONCLUSIONS: THERE WAS AN IMPROVEMENT IN SATTVA IN BOTH THE YOGA AND CONTROL GROUPS WITH A TREND OF HIGHER EFFECT SIZE IN YOGA; RAJAS REDUCED IN BOTH BUT SIGNIFICANTLY BETTER IN PE THAN IN YOGA AND TAMAS REDUCED IN PE. THE GENERAL HEALTH STATUS IMPROVED IN BOTH THE YOGA AND CONTROL GROUPS. 2008 6 104 38 A PILOT FEASIBILITY AND ACCEPTABILITY STUDY OF YOGA/MEDITATION ON THE QUALITY OF LIFE AND MARKERS OF STRESS IN PERSONS LIVING WITH HIV WHO ALSO USE CRACK COCAINE. BACKGROUND: PERSONS LIVING WITH HIV (PLWH) WHO ALSO USE CRACK COCAINE MAY HAVE STRESSFUL, CHAOTIC LIVES AND TYPICALLY DO NOT ENGAGE IN STANDARD MEDICAL CARE THAT ADDRESSES A MULTITUDE OF EXTENUATING LIFE CIRCUMSTANCES. YOGA/MEDITATION (YM) IMPROVES QUALITY OF LIFE (QOL) AND BIOMARKERS OF STRESS, BUT THE EFFECT OF THIS INTERVENTION IS ALMOST UNKNOWN IN PLWH, PARTICULARLY THOSE WHO USE CRACK COCAINE. OBJECTIVES: THIS PILOT STUDY SOUGHT TO COMPARE THE FEASIBILITY AND ACCEPTABILITY OF 60-MINUTE, TWICE-PER-WEEK SESSIONS OF YM FOR 2 MONTHS WITH THOSE OF NO-CONTACT CONTROL AND TO EVALUATE THE EFFECTS OF THE INTERVENTION ON QOL (ACCORDING TO THE SHORT FORM-36, PERCEIVED STRESS SCALE [PSS], AND IMPACT OF EVENTS SCALE [IES]) AND SALIVARY CORTISOL AND DEHYDROEPIANDROSTERONE SULFATE (DHEA-S) AMONG PLWH WHO USE CRACK COCAINE. DESIGN: PARTICIPANTS WERE RANDOMLY ASSIGNED TO YM OR NO-CONTACT CONTROL AND WERE ASSESSED AT BASELINE, 2 MONTHS AFTER THE INTERVENTION, AND 4 MONTHS' FOLLOW-UP. RESULTS: THE YM PROGRAM WAS ACCEPTABLE AND FEASIBLE, WITH HIGH OVERALL ATTENDANCE (89%) AND INDIVIDUAL PARTICIPATION IN YOGA SESSIONS (83%). YM PARTICIPANTS SHOWED MODEST IMPROVEMENTS ON QOL. THE PSS TOTAL SCORE AND THE IES INTRUSION SCORE IMPROVED SIGNIFICANTLY 2 MONTHS AFTER THE INTERVENTION, BUT CORTISOL AND DHEA-S DID NOT CHANGE. CONCLUSIONS: THIS PILOT STUDY SHOWED A HIGH LEVEL OF FEASIBILITY AND ACCEPTABILITY AND MODEST EFFECTS ON MEASURES OF QOL AMONG PLWH WHO USE CRACK COCAINE. THE RESULTS SUGGEST UTILITY OF YM AS A SIMPLE, SAFE, AND INEXPENSIVE FORMAT TO IMPROVE QOL IN A POPULATION THAT HAS MANY MEDICAL DIFFICULTIES AND EXTENUATING STRESSORS. 2015 7 192 52 A RANDOMIZED TRIAL COMPARING EFFECT OF YOGA AND EXERCISES ON QUALITY OF LIFE IN AMONG NURSING POPULATION WITH CHRONIC LOW BACK PAIN. BACKGROUND: CHRONIC LOW BACK PAIN (CLBP) ADVERSELY AFFECTS QUALITY OF LIFE (QOL) IN NURSING PROFESSIONALS. INTEGRATED YOGA HAS A POSITIVE IMPACT ON CLBP. STUDIES ASSESSING THE EFFECTS OF YOGA ON CLBP IN NURSING POPULATION ARE LACKING. AIM: THIS STUDY WAS CONDUCTED TO EVALUATE THE EFFECTS OF INTEGRATED YOGA AND PHYSICAL EXERCISES ON QOL IN NURSES WITH CLBP. METHODS: A TOTAL OF 88 WOMEN NURSES FROM A TERTIARY CARE HOSPITAL OF SOUTH INDIA WERE RANDOMIZED INTO YOGA GROUP (N = 44; AGE - 31.45 +/- 3.47 YEARS) AND PHYSICAL EXERCISE GROUP (N = 44; AGE - 32.75 +/- 3.71 YEARS). YOGA GROUP WAS INTERVENED WITH INTEGRATED YOGA THERAPY MODULE PRACTICES, 1 H/DAY AND 5 DAYS A WEEK FOR 6 WEEKS. PHYSICAL EXERCISE GROUP PRACTICED A SET OF PHYSICAL EXERCISES FOR THE SAME DURATION. ALL PARTICIPANTS WERE ASSESSED AT BASELINE AND AFTER 6 WEEKS WITH THE WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION QUALITY OF LIFE-BRIEF (WHOQOL-BREF) QUESTIONNAIRE. RESULTS: DATA WERE ANALYZED BY PAIRED-SAMPLES T-TEST AND INDEPENDENT-SAMPLES T-TEST FOR WITHIN- AND BETWEEN-GROUP COMPARISONS, RESPECTIVELY, USING THE STATISTICAL PACKAGE FOR THE SOCIAL SCIENCES (SPSS). WITHIN-GROUP ANALYSIS FOR QOL REVEALED A SIGNIFICANT IMPROVEMENT IN PHYSICAL, PSYCHOLOGICAL, AND SOCIAL DOMAINS (EXCEPT ENVIRONMENTAL DOMAIN) IN BOTH GROUPS. BETWEEN-GROUP ANALYSIS SHOWED A HIGHER PERCENTAGE OF IMPROVEMENT IN YOGA AS COMPARED TO EXERCISE GROUP EXCEPT ENVIRONMENTAL DOMAIN. CONCLUSIONS: INTEGRATED YOGA WAS SHOWED IMPROVEMENTS IN PHYSICAL, PSYCHOLOGICAL, AND SOCIAL HEALTH DOMAINS OF QOL BETTER THAN PHYSICAL EXERCISES AMONG NURSING PROFESSIONALS WITH CLBP. THERE IS A NEED TO INCORPORATE YOGA AS LIFESTYLE INTERVENTION FOR NURSING PROFESSIONALS. 2018 8 164 44 A RANDOMIZED CONTROL TRIAL OF THE EFFECT OF YOGA ON GUNAS (PERSONALITY) AND SELF ESTEEM IN NORMAL HEALTHY VOLUNTEERS. BACKGROUND/AIMS: TO STUDY THE EFFICACY OF YOGA ON GUNAS (PERSONALITY) AND SELF ESTEEM IN NORMAL ADULTS THROUGH A RANDOMIZED COMPARATIVE STUDY. MATERIALS AND METHODS: OF THE 1228 PERSONS WHO ATTENDED MOTIVATIONAL LECTURES, 226 SUBJECTS AGED 18-71 YEARS, OF BOTH SEXES, WHO SATISFIED THE INCLUSION AND EXCLUSION CRITERIA, AND WHO CONSENTED TO PARTICIPATE IN THE STUDY WERE RANDOMLY ALLOCATED INTO TWO GROUPS. THE YOGA (Y) GROUP PRACTISED AN INTEGRATED YOGA MODULE THAT INCLUDED ASANAS, PRANAYAMA, MEDITATION, NOTIONAL CORRECTION, AND DEVOTIONAL SESSIONS. THE COMPARISON GROUP PRACTISED MILD TO MODERATE PHYSICAL EXERCISES (PE). BOTH GROUPS HAD SUPERVISED PRACTICES FOR ONE HOUR DAILY, SIX DAYS A WEEK, FOR EIGHT WEEKS. GUNA (PERSONALITY) WAS ASSESSED BEFORE AND AFTER EIGHT WEEKS USING THE SELF-ADMINISTERED "THE 'GITA" INVENTORY OF PERSONALITY" (GIN) TO ASSESS SATTVA, RAJAS, AND TAMAS. SELF ESTEEM IN TERMS OF COMPETENCY (COM), GLOBAL SELF ESTEEM (GSE), MORAL AND SELF ESTEEM (MSE), SOCIAL ESTEEM (SET), FAMILY SELF ESTEEM (FSE), BODY AND PHYSICAL APPEARANCE (BPA), AND THE LIE SCALE (LIS) WERE ASSESSED USING THE SELF ESTEEM QUESTIONNAIRE (SEQ). RESULTS: THE BASELINE SCORES FOR ALL DOMAINS FOR BOTH THE GROUPS DID NOT DIFFER SIGNIFICANTLY (P > 0.05 INDEPENDENT SAMPLES T-TEST). THERE WERE SIGNIFICANT PRE-POST IMPROVEMENTS IN ALL DOMAINS IN BOTH GROUPS (P < 0.001 PAIRED T-TEST). THE NUMBER OF PERSONS WHO SHOWED IMPROVEMENT IN SATTVA AND DECREASE IN TAMAS WAS SIGNIFICANT IN THE Y BUT NOT IN THE PE GROUP (MCNEMAR TEST). THE EFFECT SIZE FOR SELF ESTEEM IN THE Y GROUP IS GREATER THAN FOR THE PE GROUP IN THREE OUT OF SEVEN DOMAINS. CONCLUSIONS: THIS RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED STUDY HAS SHOWN THE INFLUENCE OF YOGA ON GUNAS AND SELF ESTEEM IN COMPARISON TO PHYSICAL EXERCISE. 2009 9 1793 37 PRENATAL YOGA EXERCISE IMPROVES SLEEP QUALITY IN THE THIRD TRIMESTER OF PREGNANT WOMEN. OBJECTIVE: THIS STUDY AIMS TO DETERMINE THE EFFECT OF PRENATAL YOGA EXERCISES ON SLEEP QUALITY IN THIRD-TRIMESTER PREGNANT WOMEN. METHODS: IT WAS A QUASI-EXPERIMENTAL (NONEQUIVALENT CONTROL GROUP DESIGN). THE STUDY WAS CONDUCTED AT THE MA'RANG COMMUNITY HEALTH CENTER IN PANGKAJENE AND KEPULAUAN DISTRICT FROM JANUARY TO MARCH 2020. THE SAMPLE IN THIS STUDY WAS 60 PREGNANT WOMEN WITH GESTATIONAL AGE 28 WEEKS DIVIDED INTO TWO GROUPS, NAMELY 30 CONTROL GROUPS, NAMELY PREGNANT WOMEN WHO VISITED ROUTINE ANTENATAL CHECK-UPS AS USUAL, AND 30 PEOPLE IN THE INTERVENTION GROUP WERE GIVEN PRENATAL YOGA EXERCISES FOUR TIMES IN TWO WEEKS SELECTED BASED ON PURPOSIVE SAMPLING TECHNIQUES. DATA ANALYSIS USING THE WILCOXON TEST (P<0.05). RESULTS: STATISTICAL TEST RESULTS SHOWED THAT IN THE CONTROL GROUP (P-VALUE 0.001<0.05) AND INTERVENTION (P-VALUE 0.001<0.05), THERE WERE SIGNIFICANT DIFFERENCES IN SLEEP QUALITY BEFORE AND AFTER THE INTERVENTION WAS GIVEN. CONCLUSION: PRENATAL YOGA EXERCISES IMPROVE THE SLEEP QUALITY OF THIRD-TRIMESTER PREGNANT WOMEN. 2021 10 1080 31 EFFECTS OF YOGA ON QUALITY OF SLEEP OF WOMEN WITH PREMENSTRUAL SYNDROME. OBJECTIVE: WOMEN WITH PREMENSTRUAL SYNDROME (PMS) COMMONLY COMPLAIN OF SLEEP DISTURBANCES, SPECIFICALLY IN THE LUTEAL PHASE OF THE MENSTRUAL CYCLE. THEREFORE, THE EFFECTS OF YOGA ON QUALITY OF SLEEP OF WOMEN EXPERIENCING PMS WAS INVESTIGATED. MATERIAL AND METHODS: WOMEN (AGED 20-45 Y) MONITORED FOR PMS, WHO WERE REFERRED TO THE PRIVATE OBSTETRICS AND GYNECOLOGY CLINICS IN TABRIZ, IRAN, WERE REFERRED TO THE PRIVATE OBSTETRICS AND GYNECOLOGY CLINICS IN TABRIZ, IRAN. AFTERWARD, 62 WOMEN, WERE SELECTED AND DIVIDED INTO 2 GROUPS, RANDOMLY: 31 SUBJECTS IN YOGA THE YOGA GROUP AND 31 IN THE CONTROL GROUP. SUBJECTS IN YOGA PERFORMED FOR 10 WK IN 3 SESSIONS, WITH EACH SESSION LASTING 60 MIN. SUBJECTS IN THE CONTROL GROUP DID NOT PERFORM ANY YOGA. SUBJECTS COMPLETED A DEMOGRAPHIC QUESTIONNAIRE AND THE PITTSBURGH SLEEP QUALITY INDEX QUESTIONNAIRE BEFORE AND AFTER YOGA IN BOTH GROUPS. RESULTS: AFTER YOGA INTERVENTION, SUBJECTS SIGNIFICANTLY EXPRESSED IMPROVEMENT IN SLEEPING (P < .05). BASED ON THE MANN-WHITNEY U TEST, A SIGNIFICANT DIFFERENCE WAS OBSERVED IN THE SUBDOMAINS OF BOTH GROUPS ON QUALITY OF SLEEP (P < .01), SLEEP LATENCY (P < .01), AND SLEEP EFFICIENCY (P < .05). CONCLUSION: YOGA REDUCED THE DISTURBANCES OF SLEEP IN THE SUBJECTS WITH PMS, WHICH SUBSEQUENTLY IMPROVED THE EFFICIENCY OF THEIR SLEEP. THEREFORE, WE CONCLUDE THAT YOGA CAN BE PRESCRIBED FOR IMPROVING SLEEP DISTURBANCES IN WOMEN WITH PMS AND MEDICAL THERAPY WILL PROBABLY BE NEEDED IN SEVERE SITUATIONS. 2019 11 723 42 EFFECT OF LAUGHTER YOGA ON MENTAL SYMPTOMS AND SALIVARY CORTISOL LEVELS IN FIRST-YEAR NURSING STUDENTS: A RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED TRIAL. BACKGROUND: UNIVERSITY STUDENTS ARE FACED WITH SEVERAL STRESS FACTORS AFFECTING THEIR MENTAL HEALTH. THEREFORE, THE FIRST YEAR AT UNIVERSITY IS A PERIOD THAT CALLS FOR CAREFUL ATTENTION AND RESEARCH. AIM: THE AIM OF THIS STUDY IS TO EVALUATE THE EFFECT OF LAUGHTER YOGA ON MENTAL SYMPTOMS AND CORTISOL LEVELS IN NURSING STUDENTS. METHODS: THIS STUDY IS A RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED STUDY EMPLOYING A PRE-/POST-TEST DESIGN WITH A CONTROL GROUP. A TOTAL OF 75 HEALTHY UNIVERSITY STUDENTS WERE ASSIGNED TO THE INTERVENTION GROUP AND CONTROL GROUP. THE BRIEF SYMPTOM INVENTORY WAS APPLIED TO BOTH GROUPS BEFORE SESSION 1 AND AFTER SESSION 8. SALIVA SAMPLES WERE TAKEN FROM THE STUDENTS TO MEASURE THEIR CORTISOL LEVELS BEFORE AND AFTER EACH SESSION. RESULTS: EVALUATION OF THE MEAN SCORES OBTAINED FROM THE BRIEF SYMPTOM INVENTORY BEFORE AND AFTER THE INTERVENTION SHOWED A SIGNIFICANT DECREASE IN THE SCORES BETWEEN GROUPS (P < 0.05). IN THREE OUT OF THE EIGHT SESSIONS, THERE WAS A SIGNIFICANT DECREASE IN THE INTERVENTION GROUP COMPARED WITH THE CONTROL GROUP REGARDING THE MEAN VALUES OF PRE-TEST AND POST-TEST SALIVARY CORTISOL LEVELS (P < 0.05). CONCLUSION: LAUGHTER YOGA CAN PROVIDE AN EFFECTIVE MEANS TO HELP FIRST-YEAR NURSING STUDENTS COPE WITH STRESS AND REDUCE MENTAL SYMPTOMS. 2021 12 961 32 EFFECTS OF A YOGA NIDRA ON THE LIFE STRESS AND SELF-ESTEEM IN UNIVERSITY STUDENTS. OBJECTIVES: TO ASSESS THE EFFECTS OF A YOGA NIDRA ON LIFE STRESS AND SELF-ESTEEM IN UNIVERSITY STUDENTS. METHODS: THIS STUDY IS A NON-EQUIVALENT CONTROL GROUP PRETEST-POSTTEST DESIGN. FORTY UNIVERSITY STUDENTS WERE SELECTED BY CONVENIENCE SAMPLING, WITH 20 ASSIGNED TO A YOGA NIDRA GROUP AND 20 TO A CONTROL GROUP. THE YOGA GROUP PARTICIPATED IN BI-WEEKLY, 1-H SESSIONS OF YOGA NIDRA FOR 8 WEEKS. LIFE STRESS INTENSITY LEVEL WAS MEASURED USING A 10CM VISUAL ANALOG SCALE. SELF-ESTEEM SCORE WAS MEASURED BY ROSENBERG'S SELF-ESTEEM SCALE. RESULTS: THE YOGA NIDRA GROUP SHOWED SIGNIFICANTLY DECREASED LIFE STRESS INTENSITY LEVELS COMPARED TO THE CONTROL GROUP. THE YOGA GROUP ALSO SHOWED SIGNIFICANTLY INCREASED SELF-ESTEEM SCORES COMPARED TO THE CONTROL GROUP. CONCLUSIONS: THESE FINDINGS INDICATE THAT YOGA NIDRA COULD ALLEVIATE THE LIFE STRESS INTENSITY LEVEL AND INCREASE THE SELF-ESTEEM IN UNIVERSITY STUDENTS. 2019 13 709 38 EFFECT OF INTEGRATED YOGA MODULE ON PERSONALITY OF HOME GUARDS IN BENGALURU: A RANDOMIZED CONTROL TRIAL. BACKGROUND: HOME GUARDS ORGANIZATION IS AN INDEPENDENT DISCIPLINED AND UNIFORMED BODY OF VOLUNTEERS. ALL CATEGORIES OF HOME GUARDS (HGS), WHO WORK IN THE FIELD, EXPERIENCE VARIED EMOTIONS AND ARE REQUIRED TO COPE WITH VARIED SITUATIONS. YOGA PRACTICES MAY BE HELPFUL TO MASTER SUCH EMOTIONS AND SHOULD LEAD TO IMPROVEMENT IN PERSONALITY. OBJECTIVE: TO STUDY THE EFFICACY OF INTEGRATED YOGA MODULE (IYM) ON PERSONALITY (GUNAS) (YOGIC PERSONALITY MEASURE) OF HGS. METHODS: OF 500 HGS WHO ATTENDED INTRODUCTORY LECTURES, 148 HGS OF EITHER GENDER, WHO SATISFIED THE INCLUSION AND EXCLUSION CRITERIA AND WHO CONSENTED TO PARTICIPATE IN THE STUDY WERE RANDOMLY ALLOCATED TO TWO GROUPS. THE YOGA GROUP (YG) PRACTICED AN IYM FOR 1 H DAILY, 6 DAYS A WEEK FOR 8 WEEKS ALONG WITH THEIR ROUTINE WORK. THE CONTROL GROUP (CG) REMAINED ON ROUTINE WORK. PERSONALITY WAS ASSESSED BEFORE AND AFTER 8 WEEKS USING THE SELF-ADMINISTERED VEDIC PERSONALITY INVENTORY. RESULTS: BASELINE SCORES FOR ALL DOMAINS FOR BOTH GROUPS DID NOT DIFFER SIGNIFICANTLY (P > 0.05, SHAPIRO WILK'S TEST). SATTVA SCORE IN YG SIGNIFICANTLY INCREASED FROM 39.87 +/- 2.02 TO 47.14 +/- 7.22, WHERE AS IT DECREASED SIGNIFICANTLY FROM 43.66 +/- 4.39 TO 37.74 +/- 10.26 IN CG. RAJAS SCORE IN YG SIGNIFICANTLY DECREASED FROM 29.15 +/- 0.98 TO 27.46 +/- 4.38, WHERE AS IT INCREASED SIGNIFICANTLY FROM 28.60 +/- 3.55 TO 32.74 +/- 5.37 IN CG. TAMAS SCORE IN YG SIGNIFICANTLY DECREASED FROM 30.98 +/- 1.04 TO 25.40 +/- 5.11, WHERE AS IT SIGNIFICANTLY INCREASED FROM 27.74 +/- 4.43 TO 30.51 +/- 5.50 IN CG. CONCLUSIONS: RESULTS INDICATE THAT IYM CAN PROFITABLY BE SUGGESTED FOR HGS AS A COST-EFFECTIVE MEANS TO HELP THEM COPE WITH STRESSFUL SITUATIONS. 2016 14 2081 39 THE EFFECT OF GROUP MINDFULNESS-BASED STRESS REDUCTION AND CONSCIOUSNESS YOGA PROGRAM ON QUALITY OF LIFE AND FATIGUE SEVERITY IN PATIENTS WITH MS. INTRODUCTION: THE CHRONIC NATURE OF MULTIPLE SCLEROSIS (MS), HAVE CAN LEAVE DEVASTATING EFFECTS ON QUALITY OF LIFE AND FATIGUE. THE PRESENT RESEARCH AIMED TO STUDY THE EFFECT OF GROUP MINDFULNESS-BASED STRESS REDUCTION (MBSR) AND CONSCIOUS YOGA PROGRAM ON THE QUALITY OF LIFE AND FATIGUE SEVERITY AMONG PATIENTS WITH MS. METHODS: THIS STUDY WAS QUASI-EXPERIMENTAL WITH INTERVENTION AND CONTROL GROUPS. THE STATISTICAL POPULATION INCLUDED ALL MEMBERS TO MS SOCIETY OF TEHRAN PROVINCE, 24 OF WHOM DIAGNOSED WITH MS WERE SELECTED AS THE SAMPLE BASED ON THE INCLUSION CRITERIA. THE SUBJECTS WERE RANDOMLY ASSIGNED INTO THE TEST GROUP (12 PATIENTS) AND THE CONTROL GROUP (12 PATIENTS). MS QUALITY OF LIFE-54 (MSQOL-54) AND FATIGUE SEVERITY SCALE (FSS) WERE USED FOR DATA COLLECTION. SUBJECTS IN THE TEST GROUP UNDERWENT A MBSR AND CONSCIOUS YOGA PROGRAM IN 8 TWO-HOUR SESSIONS. THE DATA WERE ANALYZED USING THE SPSS VER.13 SOFTWARE. RESULTS: THE STUDY FINDINGS SHOWED THAT THERE WAS A SIGNIFICANT DIFFERENCE BETWEEN SUBJECTS IN THE EXPERIMENTAL AND CONTROL GROUPS IN TERMS OF MEAN SCORE OF SOME SUBSCALES OF QUALITY OF LIFE INCLUDING PHYSICAL HEALTH, ROLE LIMITATIONS DUE TO PHYSICAL AND EMOTIONAL PROBLEMS, ENERGY, EMOTIONAL WELL-BEING, HEALTH DISTRESS, HEALTH PERCEPTION, AND SATISFACTION WITH SEXUAL FUNCTION, OVERALL QUALITY OF LIFE, AND FATIGUE SEVERITY. CONCLUSION: THE RESULTS SHOW THAT THE PROGRAM IS EFFECTIVE IN REDUCTION OF FATIGUE SEVERITY AND IMPROVING SOME SUBSCALES OF QUALITY OF LIFE IN MS PATIENTS. HENCE, THIS SUPPORTIVE METHOD CAN BE USED AS AN EFFECTIVE WAY FOR IMPROVING QUALITY OF LIFE AND RELIEVING FATIGUE IN MS PATIENTS. 2016 15 2091 40 THE EFFECT OF TELE-YOGA TRAINING IN HEALTHY WOMEN ON MENSTRUAL SYMPTOMS, QUALITY OF LIFE, ANXIETY-DEPRESSION LEVEL, BODY AWARENESS, AND SELF-ESTEEM DURING COVID-19 PANDEMIC. BACKGROUND AND AIMS: THIS STUDY WAS PLANNED TO EXAMINE THE EFFECTS OF TELE-YOGA TRAINING ON MENSTRUAL SYMPTOMS, QUALITY OF LIFE, ANXIETY-DEPRESSION LEVEL, BODY AWARENESS, AND SELF-ESTEEM IN HEALTHY WOMEN. METHODS: THIRTY-TWO HEALTHY PREMENOPAUSAL WOMEN BETWEEN THE AGES OF 18 AND 45 WERE INCLUDED IN THE STUDY. THE WOMEN WERE RANDOMLY DIVIDED INTO TWO GROUPS AS TELE-YOGA TRAINING (N: 16) AND THE CONTROL GROUP (N: 16). THE TELE-YOGA TRAINING WAS PERFORMED ON THE ZOOM SOFTWARE FOR 6 WEEKS, 2 TIMES A WEEK AND 45 MIN A DAY. NO INTERVENTION WAS MADE IN THE CONTROL GROUP. MENSTRUAL PAIN AND SYMPTOMS BY MENSTRUAL SYMPTOM SCALE (MSS), QUALITY OF LIFE BY NOTTINGHAM HEALTH PROFILE (NHP), DEPRESSION LEVELS BY BECK DEPRESSION SCALE (BDS), ANXIETY LEVELS BY STATE AND TRAIT ANXIETY SCALE (STAI), BODY AWARENESS BY BODY AWARENESS QUESTIONNAIRE (BAQ), AND SELF-ESTEEM BY ROSENBERG SELF-ESTEEM SCALE (RSES) WERE DETERMINED. RESULTS: IN THE TELE-YOGA TRAINING GROUP, STATISTICALLY SIGNIFICANT IMPROVEMENTS WERE OBSERVED IN THE MSS TOTAL (P = 0.001), NEGATIVE EFFECTS (P = 0.003), MENSTRUAL PAIN SYMPTOMS (P = 0.003), COPING METHODS (P = 0.001) SUB-PARAMETERS, BDS SCORE (P = 0.000), NHP SLEEP (P = 0.021), ENERGY (P = 0.002), EMOTIONAL (P = 0.000), AND ISOLATION (P = 0.039) SUB-PARAMETERS. IN THE CONTROL GROUP, THERE WAS STATISTICALLY SIGNIFICANT WORSENING IN THE NHP TOTAL SCORE (P = 0.000). AS REGARDS THE DIFFERENCES IN VALUES BETWEEN THE TWO GROUPS, THERE WERE STATISTICALLY DIFFERENCE IN FAVOR OF THE TRAINING GROUP IN SUB-PARAMETERS OF MSS, NHP SLEEP, ENERGY, EMOTIONAL, AND ISOLATION SUB-PARAMETERS, AND BDS AND BAQ SCORES (P < 0.05). CONCLUSION: IT IS THOUGHT THAT TELE-YOGA TRAINING MAY BE A SAFE AND EFFECTIVE METHOD IN REDUCING MENSTRUAL SYMPTOMS AND DEPRESSION, INCREASING QUALITY OF LIFE, AND BODY AWARENESS. 2022 16 1550 40 LAUGHTER YOGA VERSUS GROUP EXERCISE PROGRAM IN ELDERLY DEPRESSED WOMEN: A RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED TRIAL. BACKGROUND: LAUGHTER YOGA FOUNDED BY M. KATARIA IS A COMBINATION OF UNCONDITIONED LAUGHTER AND YOGIC BREATHING. ITS EFFECT ON MENTAL AND PHYSICAL ASPECTS OF HEALTHY INDIVIDUALS WAS SHOWN TO BE BENEFICIAL. OBJECTIVE: THE OBJECTIVE OF THIS STUDY WAS TO COMPARE THE EFFECTIVENESS OF KATARIA'S LAUGHTER YOGA AND GROUP EXERCISE THERAPY IN DECREASING DEPRESSION AND INCREASING LIFE SATISFACTION IN OLDER ADULT WOMEN OF A CULTURAL COMMUNITY OF TEHRAN, IRAN. METHODS: SEVENTY DEPRESSED OLD WOMEN WHO WERE MEMBERS OF A CULTURAL COMMUNITY OF TEHRAN WERE CHOSEN BY GERIATRIC DEPRESSION SCALE (SCORE>10). AFTER COMPLETION OF LIFE SATISFACTION SCALE PRE-TEST AND DEMOGRAPHIC QUESTIONNAIRE, SUBJECTS WERE RANDOMIZED INTO THREE GROUPS OF LAUGHTER THERAPY, EXERCISE THERAPY, AND CONTROL. SUBSEQUENTLY, DEPRESSION POST-TEST AND LIFE SATISFACTION POST-TEST WERE DONE FOR ALL THREE GROUPS. THE DATA WERE ANALYZED USING ANALYSIS OF COVARIANCE AND BONFERRONI'S CORRECTION. RESULTS: SIXTY SUBJECTS COMPLETED THE STUDY. THE ANALYSIS REVEALED A SIGNIFICANT DIFFERENCE IN DECREASE IN DEPRESSION SCORES OF BOTH LAUGHTER YOGA AND EXERCISE THERAPY GROUP IN COMPARISON TO CONTROL GROUP (P<0.001 AND P<0.01, RESPECTIVELY). THERE WAS NO SIGNIFICANT DIFFERENCE BETWEEN LAUGHTER YOGA AND EXERCISE THERAPY GROUPS. THE INCREASE IN LIFE SATISFACTION OF LAUGHTER YOGA GROUP SHOWED A SIGNIFICANT DIFFERENCE IN COMPARISON WITH CONTROL GROUP (P<0.001). NO SIGNIFICANT DIFFERENCE WAS FOUND BETWEEN EXERCISE THERAPY AND EITHER CONTROL OR LAUGHTER YOGA GROUP. CONCLUSION: OUR FINDINGS SHOWED THAT LAUGHTER YOGA IS AT LEAST AS EFFECTIVE AS GROUP EXERCISE PROGRAM IN IMPROVEMENT OF DEPRESSION AND LIFE SATISFACTION OF ELDERLY DEPRESSED WOMEN. 2011 17 2092 25 THE EFFECT OF THE YOGA COURSE ON MINDFULNESS AND SELF-COMPASSION AMONG NURSING STUDENTS. PURPOSE: THIS STUDY AIMED TO INVESTIGATE THE EFFECT OF YOGA ON MINDFULNESS AND SELF-COMPASSION AMONG NURSING STUDENTS. DESIGN AND METHODS: THE QUASIEXPERIMENTAL SINGLE-GROUP PRETEST-POSTTEST DESIGN STUDY CONDUCTED WITH 47 NURSING STUDENTS. THE DATA WERE COLLECTED USING A "PERSONAL DATA FORM," THE "MINDFUL ATTENTION AWARENESS SCALE (MAAS)," AND THE "SELF-COMPASSION SCALE (SCS)." FINDINGS: WHILE THE MEAN SCORE OF THE STUDENTS FROM THE "MAAS" WAS 60.51 (+/-11.35) IN THE PRETEST, IT INCREASED TO 63.7 (+/-8.75) IN THE POSTTEST (P < 0.05). WHILE THE MEAN SCORE OF THE STUDENTS FROM THE SCS WAS 3.22 +/- 0.69 IN THE PRETEST, IT INCREASED TO 3.59 (+/-0.53) IN THE POSTTEST (P < 0.05). A STATISTICALLY SIGNIFICANT RELATIONSHIP WAS FOUND BETWEEN MINDFULNESS AND SCS SCORES (R = 0.162). PRACTICE IMPLICATIONS: AFTER THE YOGA COURSE, MINDFULNESS AND SELF-COMPASSION OF THE STUDENTS WERE FOUND TO BE HIGHER THAN IT WAS BEFORE THE LESSONS. THE HIGHER THE MINDFULNESS LEVEL OF THE STUDENTS IS, THE HIGHER THE LEVEL OF SELF-COMPASSION IS. 2021 18 2123 33 THE EFFECTIVENESS OF GENTLE PRENATAL YOGA ON THE RECOVERY OF DEPRESSION LEVEL IN PREGNANT WOMEN AGED. OBJECTIVE: THIS STUDY AIMED TO ANALYZE THE EFFECTIVENESS OF GENTLE PRENATAL YOGA TOWARD DEPRESSION AND ABNORMAL SEROTONIN HORMONE LEVELS IN PREGNANT WOMEN AGED <20 AND >35 YEARS OLD. METHOD: THIS STUDY WAS CONDUCTED AT BARA BARAYA HEALTH CENTER, ANTANG HEALTH CENTER, KAPASA HEALTH CENTER, AND MAMAJANG HEALTH CENTER. THE APPLIED RESEARCH DESIGN IN THIS STUDY WAS A QUASI-EXPERIMENT WITH A NON-EQUIVALENT CONTROL GROUP DESIGN APPROACH. SAMPLES WERE SELECTED USING A PURPOSIVE SAMPLE TECHNIQUE. THE INSTRUMENT USED WAS THE BECK DEPRESSION INVENTORY (BDI) QUESTIONNAIRE. THE NUMBER OF SAMPLES IN THIS STUDY WAS 24 RESPONDENTS DIVIDED INTO 2, 12 IN THE INTERVENTION GROUP AND 12 IN THE CONTROL GROUP. SAMPLE CRITERIA IN THIS STUDY WERE PREGNANT WOMEN AGED <20 AND >35 YEARS OLD, HAVING BEEN IN TRIMESTER II-III WITH THE GESTATIONAL AGE OF >/=20 TO <31 WEEKS, AND NOT HAVING COMPLICATIONS IN PREGNANCY. RESULTS: THE MEAN VALUES FOR THE INTERVENTION GROUP WERE 6.50 IN THE PRE-TEST TO THE MID-TEST AND 6.50 IN THE MID-TEST TO THE POST-TEST. MEANWHILE, THE MEAN VALUES FOR THE CONTROL GROUP WERE 5.61 IN THE PRE-TEST TO THE MID-TEST AND 4.50 IN THE MID-TEST TO THE POST-TEST. THIS INDICATED THAT THE INTERVENTION GROUP EXPERIENCED A SIGNIFICANTLY REDUCED LEVEL OF DEPRESSION BASED ON THE BD-II (BECK DEPRESSION INVENTORY-II) SCORES WHEN COMPARED TO THE CONTROL GROUP. FURTHERMORE, BASED ON THE COMPARISON OF THE POST-TEST DATA BETWEEN THE INTERVENTION GROUP AND THE CONTROL GROUP, IT WAS OBTAINED THE P-VALUE OF 0.005 (ALPHA<0.05). CONCLUSION: THERE WERE DIFFERENCES IN BDI-II (BECK DEPRESSION INVENTORY-II) SCORES BETWEEN THE INTERVENTION GROUP AND THE CONTROL GROUP AFTER RECEIVING PRENATAL GENTLE YOGA TREATMENT. 2021 19 2737 42 YOGA POSITIVELY AFFECTED DEPRESSION AND BLOOD PRESSURE IN WOMEN WITH PREMENSTRUAL SYNDROME IN A RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED CLINICAL TRIAL. WOMEN WITH PREMENSTRUAL SYNDROME (PMS) OFTEN COMPLAIN ABOUT DEPRESSION WHEN THEIR MENSTRUAL CYCLE BEGINS. THIS STUDY INVESTIGATED THE EFFECTS OF YOGA ON WOMEN WITH PMS SUFFERING FROM DEPRESSION DURING MENSTRUAL CYCLE. METHODS: THIS RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED CLINICAL TRIAL WAS CONDUCTED FROM APRIL TO OCTOBER 2015 IN TABRIZ, IRAN. ALL SUBJECTS (20-45 YEARS OLD), WHO WERE FREQUENTLY REFERRED TO THE PRIVATE OBSTETRICS AND GYNECOLOGY CLINICS, WERE INITIALLY MONITORED FOR PMS AND DEPRESSION. SUBJECTS COMPLETED THE DEMOGRAPHIC AND BECK DEPRESSION INVENTORY-II (BDI-II) QUESTIONNAIRES BEFORE AND AFTER INTERVENTION. IN ADDITION, SUBJECTS WERE MONITORED FOR ELIGIBLE AND INELIGIBLE CRITERIA. IN THIS STUDY 62 SUBJECTS WERE RANDOMLY SELECTED FOR THE YOGA GROUP AND CONTROL GROUPS. SUBJECTS PRACTICED YOGA OVER TWO MONTHS IN THREE SESSIONS, THE DURATION OF EACH SESSION WAS 60MIN. RESULTS: THE GENERAL SCORE OF THE DEPRESSION AFTER YOGA INTERVENTION WAS STATISTICALLY SIGNIFICANT COMPARED TO THE CONTROL GROUP (P<0.036) AND YOGA GROUP BEFORE INTERVENTION (P<0.001). THE DIASTOLIC PRESSURE DECREASED SIGNIFICANTLY AFTER YOGA INTERVENTION (P<0.029). YOGA DECREASED THE STATE OF DEPRESSION AND DIASTOLIC PRESSURE OF THE SUBJECTS WITH PMS COMPLAINING FROM DEPRESSION. CONCLUSION: WE CONCLUDE THAT YOGA HAS STRONG EFFECTS ON DEPRESSION SYMPTOMS AND BLOOD PRESSURE, THEREFORE IT CAN BE USED AS A COMPLEMENTARY OR ALTERNATIVE REMEDY FOR PMS PATIENTS. 2019 20 2084 41 THE EFFECT OF LAUGHTER YOGA ON GENERAL HEALTH AMONG NURSING STUDENTS. BACKGROUND: PROMOTION AND PROVISION OF INDIVIDUALS' HEALTH IS ONE OF THE BASES FOR DEVELOPMENT IN SOCIETIES. STUDENTS' MENTAL HEALTH IS VERY IMPORTANT IN EACH SOCIETY. STUDENTS OF MEDICAL SCIENCES UNIVERSITIES, ESPECIALLY NURSING STUDENTS, ARE UNDER VARIOUS STRESSES IN CLINICAL ENVIRONMENT, IN ADDITION TO THE STRESS THEY EXPERIENCE IN THEORETICAL EDUCATION ENVIRONMENT. WITH REGARD TO THE IMPORTANCE OF NURSING STUDENTS' GENERAL HEALTH AND CONSIDERING THE VARIOUS EXISTING STRATEGIES TO PROMOTE GENERAL HEALTH COMPONENTS, USE OF COMPLEMENTARY TREATMENTS IS MORE CONSIDERED BECAUSE OF THEIR BETTER PUBLIC ACCEPTANCE, LOW COSTS, AND FEWER COMPLICATIONS. ONE OF THE NEW STRATEGIES IN THIS REGARD IS LAUGHTER YOGA. THE PRESENT STUDY WAS CONDUCTED WITH AN AIM TO DEFINE THE EFFECT OF LAUGHTER YOGA ON GENERAL HEALTH AMONG NURSING STUDENTS. MATERIALS AND METHODS: THIS IS A QUASI-EXPERIMENTAL TWO-GROUP THREE-STEP STUDY CONDUCTED ON 38 MALE NURSING STUDENTS IN THE NURSING AND MIDWIFERY SCHOOL OF ISFAHAN UNIVERSITY OF MEDICAL SCIENCES IN 2012. IN THE STUDY GROUP, EIGHT 1 H SESSIONS OF LAUGHTER YOGA WERE HELD (TWO SESSIONS A WEEK), AND IN THE CONTROL GROUP, NO INTERVENTION WAS CONDUCTED. THE DATA OF THE PRESENT STUDY WERE COLLECTED BY GOLDBERG AND HILLER'S GENERAL HEALTH QUESTIONNAIRE AND ANALYZED BY SPSS VERSION 12. RESULTS: THE FINDINGS SHOWED A SIGNIFICANT DIFFERENCE IN THE MEAN SCORES OF GENERAL HEALTH BEFORE AND AFTER LAUGHTER YOGA INTERVENTION IN THE TWO GROUPS OF STUDY AND CONTROL. CONCLUSIONS: THE FINDINGS SHOWED THAT LAUGHTER YOGA HAD A POSITIVE EFFECT ON STUDENTS' GENERAL HEALTH AND IMPROVED THE SIGNS OF PHYSICAL AND SLEEP DISORDERS, LOWERED ANXIETY AND DEPRESSION, AND PROMOTED THEIR SOCIAL FUNCTION. THEREFORE, LAUGHTER YOGA CAN BE USED AS ONE OF THE EFFECTIVE STRATEGIES ON STUDENTS' GENERAL HEALTH. 2014