1 1664 94 NATUROPATHY AND YOGA AS AN ADJUVANT FOR PEOPLE LIVING WITH HIV/AIDS - A CASE SERIES REPORT. HUMAN IMMUNODEFICIENCY VIRUS (HIV) IS AN INFECTION THAT POSES A GREAT THREAT TO BOTH DEVELOPED AND DEVELOPING COUNTRIES. HEALTH FACILITIES OFFERING COMPLEMENTARY CARE, ALONG WITH STANDARD CARE, HAVE BEEN CONSIDERED AS A USEFUL STRATEGY TO OVERCOME THE BURDEN OF HIV AND PROMOTE QUALITY AND WELLBEING AMONG PEOPLE LIVING WITH HIV/AIDS (PLWHA). IN THIS REPORT, WE MAKE REFERENCE TO SEVEN PARTICIPANTS DIAGNOSED WITH HIV, WHO UNDERWENT NATUROPATHY AND YOGA BASED LIFESTYLE INTERVENTION (NYLI), FOR VARYING DURATIONS, AT A SANATORIUM FOR PLWHA. THE CASES SUGGEST THAT NYLI FUNCTIONS AS AN ADJUVANT THERAPY THAT COMPLEMENTS STANDARD CARE, IMPROVES ADHERENCE AND PROMOTES HEALTH-RELATED OUTCOMES IN HIV AFFILIATED CLINICAL MARKERS, SUCH AS HAEMOGLOBIN, WEIGHT AND CD4+ COUNTS. HOWEVER, FURTHER CONTROLLED TRIALS ARE REQUIRED TO ESTABLISH WARRANTING EVIDENCE. 2019 2 707 24 EFFECT OF INTEGRATED YOGA (IY) ON PSYCHOLOGICAL STATES AND CD4 COUNTS OF HIV-1 INFECTED PATIENTS: A RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED PILOT STUDY. BACKGROUND: HUMAN IMMUNODEFICIENCY VIRUS (HIV) INFECTED INDIVIDUALS FREQUENTLY SUFFER FROM ANXIETY AND DEPRESSION. DEPRESSION HAS BEEN ASSOCIATED WITH RAPID DECLINE IN CD4 COUNTS AND WORSENED TREATMENT OUTCOMES IN HIV-INFECTED PATIENTS. YOGA HAS BEEN USED TO REDUCE PSYCHOPATHOLOGY AND IMPROVE IMMUNITY. AIM: TO STUDY THE EFFECT OF 1-MONTH INTEGRATED YOGA (IY) INTERVENTION ON ANXIETY, DEPRESSION, AND CD4 COUNTS IN PATIENTS SUFFERING FROM HIV-1 INFECTION. METHODS: FORTY FOUR HIV-1 INFECTED INDIVIDUALS FROM TWO HIV REHABILITATION CENTERS OF MANIPUR STATE OF INDIA WERE RANDOMIZED INTO TWO GROUPS: YOGA (N = 22; 12 MALES) AND CONTROL (N = 22; 14 MALES). YOGA GROUP RECEIVED IY INTERVENTION, WHICH INCLUDED PHYSICAL POSTURES (ASANAS), BREATHING PRACTICES (PRANAYAMA), RELAXATION TECHNIQUES, AND MEDITATION. IY SESSIONS WERE GIVEN 60 MIN/DAY, 6 DAYS A WEEK FOR 1 MONTH. CONTROL GROUP FOLLOWED DAILY ROUTINE DURING THIS PERIOD. ALL PATIENTS WERE ON ANTI-RETROVIRAL THERAPY (ART) AND DOSAGES WERE KEPT STABLE DURING THE STUDY. THERE WAS NO SIGNIFICANT DIFFERENCE IN AGE, GENDER, EDUCATION, CD4 COUNTS, AND ART STATUS BETWEEN THE TWO GROUPS. HOSPITAL ANXIETY AND DEPRESSION SCALE WAS USED TO ASSESS ANXIETY AND DEPRESSION, CD4 COUNTS WERE MEASURED BY FLOW CYTOMETRY BEFORE AND AFTER INTERVENTION. ANALYSIS OF VARIANCE - REPEATED MEASURES WAS APPLIED TO ANALYZE THE DATA USING SPSS VERSION 10. RESULTS: WITHIN GROUP COMPARISON SHOWED A SIGNIFICANT REDUCTION IN DEPRESSION SCORES (F [1, 21] =4.19, P < 0.05) AND NON-SIGNIFICANT REDUCTION IN ANXIETY SCORES ALONG WITH NON SIGNIFICANT INCREMENT IN CD4 COUNTS IN THE YOGA GROUP. IN THE CONTROL GROUP, THERE WAS A NON-SIGNIFICANT INCREASE IN ANXIETY AND DEPRESSION SCORES AND REDUCTION IN CD4 COUNTS. BETWEEN-GROUP COMPARISON REVEALED A SIGNIFICANT REDUCTION IN DEPRESSION SCORES (F [1, 21] =5.64, P < 0.05) AND SIGNIFICANT INCREASE IN CD4 COUNTS (F [1, 21] =5.35, P < 0.05) IN THE YOGA GROUP AS COMPARED TO THE CONTROL. CONCLUSION: ONE MONTH PRACTICE OF IY MAY REDUCE DEPRESSION AND IMPROVE IMMUNITY IN HIV-1 INFECTED ADULTS. 2016 3 1362 32 IMMUNOLOGICAL AND PSYCHOLOGICAL EFFICACY OF MEDITATION/YOGA INTERVENTION AMONG PEOPLE LIVING WITH HIV (PLWH): A SYSTEMATIC REVIEW AND META-ANALYSES OF 19 RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED TRIALS. BACKGROUND: AN EXPANDING NUMBER OF MIND-BODY THERAPIES ARE BEING USED TO REDUCE THE PSYCHOLOGICAL BURDEN OF PEOPLES LIVING WITH HUMAN IMMUNODEFICIENCY VIRUS (HIV). HOWEVER, THE EFFECTS ON THE IMMUNE SYSTEM AND MENTAL HEALTH VARIED AMONG STUDIES. PURPOSE: THIS META-ANALYSIS WAS CONDUCTED TO SUMMARIZE THE RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED TRIALS TO DRAW COMPREHENSIVE CONCLUSIONS REGARDING THE PSYCHO-IMMUNOLOGICAL EFFICACY. METHODS: RANDOM-EFFECTS MODELS WERE USED TO ASSESS THE OUTCOME OF INTEREST. EGGER'S TESTS WERE USED TO IDENTIFY PUBLICATION BIAS. SUBGROUP AND META-REGRESSION WERE USED TO EXPLORE POTENTIAL MODERATORS. THIS REVIEW WAS REGISTERED ON THE PROSPERO DATABASE (CRD42019148118). RESULTS: NINETEEN RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED TRIALS WITH A TOTAL SAMPLE SIZE OF 1,300 WERE INCLUDED IN THIS META-ANALYSIS. REGARDING IMMUNE SYSTEM OUTCOME, MIND-BODY THERAPY SIGNIFICANTLY IMPROVED CD4 T-CELL COUNTS (COHEN'S D = 0.214, P = .027) AND MAINTAINED (0.427, P = .049). IN ADDITION, BASELINE CD4 T-CELL COUNTS AND YEARS SINCE HIV DIAGNOSIS SIGNIFICANTLY MODERATED THE EFFICACY OF MIND-BODY PRACTICES ON CD4 IMPROVEMENT (ALL PS < .001). REGARDING MENTAL HEALTH OUTCOME, MIND-BODY THERAPY SIGNIFICANTLY REDUCED STRESS, DEPRESSION, AND ANXIETY SYMPTOMS (0.422, P < .001; 0.506, P < .001, AND 0.709, P < .001, RESPECTIVELY) WHILE IMPROVING QUALITY OF LIFE (0.67, P < .001). CONCLUSIONS: MEDITATION/YOGA INTERVENTION COULD RESULT IN POTENTIAL BENEFITS WITH REGARD TO IMPROVED CD4 T-CELL COUNTS IMMEDIATELY AFTER THE INTERVENTION AND AT LONG-TERM FOLLOW-UP, WHILE ALSO IMPROVING THEIR MENTAL HEALTH. THE COST-EFFECTIVE MEDITATION/YOGA INTERVENTION SHOULD BE INTEGRATED INTO ROUTINE CARE FOR PEOPLE LIVING WITH HIV, ESPECIALLY FOR THOSE WITH LOWER CD4 BASELINE AND FEWER YEARS SINCE DIAGNOSIS. 2021 4 1011 44 EFFECTS OF NATUROPATHY AND YOGA INTERVENTION ON CD4 COUNT OF THE INDIVIDUALS RECEIVING ANTIRETROVIRAL THERAPY-REPORT FROM A HUMAN IMMUNODEFICIENCY VIRUS SANATORIUM, PUNE. BACKGROUND: HUMAN IMMUNODEFICIENCY VIRUS (HIV) INFECTION IS ONE OF THE MOST DEBILITATING CONDITIONS WHICH HAVE AFFECTED NEARLY 32 MILLION PEOPLE ACROSS THE GLOBE. ANTIRETROVIRAL THERAPY (ART) IS THE STANDARD CARE GIVEN TO THE HIV POSITIVE INDIVIDUALS. BUT THE PATIENT ADHERENCE TO ART IS FOUND TO BE VERY LESS AS PER PREVIOUS STUDIES. COMPLEMENTARY AND ALTERNATIVE MEDICINE IS BECOMING A PILLAR IN THE REHABILITATIVE EFFORTS FOR MANY LIVING WITH HIV/AIDS. AIM: TO EVALUATE THE EFFECT OF NATUROPATHY AND YOGA INTERVENTION ON CD4 COUNTS OF HIV PATIENTS. METHODS: NINETY-SIX PATIENTS PREDIAGNOSED AS HIV POSITIVE WERE ENROLLED AFTER OBTAINING WRITTEN CONSENT AND TREATED WITH NATUROPATHY AND YOGA INTERVENTIONS LIKE HYDROTHERAPY, DIET THERAPY, MUD THERAPY, COUNSELING, ETC., FOR VARIOUS DURATIONS AT NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF NATUROPATHY SANATORIUM. THEY WERE GROUPED INTO FOUR GROUPS (G1: 1-7 DAYS, G2: 8-15 DAYS, G3: 16-30 DAYS, G4: >30 DAYS) BASED ON DURATION OF STAY. CD4 COUNT OF EACH INDIVIDUAL WAS RECORDED PRE- AND POST-STAY. RESULTS: ALL ANALYSES WERE CONDUCTED USING R PACKAGE VERSION 3.01. DEPENDENT SAMPLE T-TESTS WERE CONDUCTED TO EXAMINE THE SIGNIFICANCE AT 95% CONFIDENCE INTERVAL. OF THE 96 PATIENTS, MALE PATIENTS CONSTITUTE 55.2% AND FEMALE PATIENTS 44.8% WITH MEAN AGE 34.74 RECEIVED 1-180 DAYS (MEAN 28.75, STANDARD DEVIATION: 14.16) TREATMENT. SIGNIFICANT INCREASE IN THE CD4 COUNT WAS OBSERVED IN TWO OUT OF THE FOUR GROUPS (G2: P = 0.052, AND G4: P = 0.00038, RESPECTIVELY). CONCLUSION: AN INCREASING TREND IN THE CD4 COUNT WAS OBSERVED THAT WAS PROPORTIONAL TO THE LENGTH OF THE STAY OF PARTICIPANTS AT THE HIV SANATORIUM. THIS INDICATES THE POSSIBILITY OF LIFESTYLE CHANGES CAN BRING POSITIVE OUTCOMES IN PEOPLE LIVING WITH HIV/AIDS WHEN USED AS AN ADJUVANT WITH ART CARE. THE LACK OF CONTROL GROUP IS A MAJOR LIMITATION OF THIS STUDY. NO ATTEMPT WAS MADE TO STUDY THE SUBJECTIVE CHANGES IN THE QUALITY OF LIFE, VIRAL LOAD, ETC., HOWEVER, LARGER CONTROLLED STUDIES ARE WARRANTED FOR CONCLUSIVE RESULTS. 2015 5 61 28 A COMPREHENSIVE REVIEW OF YOGA RESEARCH IN 2020. OBJECTIVES: ACCUMULATED EVIDENCE GARNERED IN THE LAST FEW DECADES HAS HIGHLIGHTED THE ROLE OF YOGA IN HEALTH AND DISEASE. THE OVERWHELMING MORTALITY AND MORBIDITY MEDIATED BY NONCOMMUNICABLE EPIDEMICS SUCH AS HEART DISEASE AND CANCER HAVE FOSTERED A SEARCH FOR MECHANISMS TO ATTENUATE THEM. DESPITE OVERWHELMING SUCCESS IN ACUTE CARE, THE EFFICACY OF MODERN MEDICINES HAS BEEN LIMITED ON THIS FRONT. YOGA IS ONE OF THE INTEGRATIVE THERAPIES THAT HAS COME TO LIGHT AS HAVING A SUBSTANTIAL ROLE IN PREVENTING AND MITIGATING SUCH DISORDERS. IT THUS SEEMS TRITE TO ANALYZE AND DISCUSS THE RESEARCH ADVANCEMENTS IN YOGA FOR 2020. THE PRESENT REVIEW ATTEMPTS TO DISTILL RECENT RESEARCH HIGHLIGHTS FROM VOLUMINOUS LITERATURE GENERATED IN 2020. METHODS: THIS REVIEW WAS CONDUCTED ON THE ARTICLES PUBLISHED OR ASSIGNED TO AN ISSUE IN 2020. THE AUTHORS SEARCHED THE PUBMED DATABASE FOR CLINICAL STUDIES PUBLISHED IN THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE, USING YOGA (INCLUDING MEDITATION) AS THE INTERVENTION, AND HAVING AN ADEQUATE DESCRIPTION OF THE INTERVENTION. THEN, THEY EXTRACTED DATA FROM EACH STUDY INTO A STANDARDIZED GOOGLE SHEET. RESULTS: A TOTAL OF 1149 CITATIONS WERE RETRIEVED IN THE INITIAL SEARCH. OF THESE, 46 STUDIES MET ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA AND WERE FINALLY INCLUDED. THE STUDIES WERE PREDOMINANTLY ON MENTAL HEALTH AND NEUROPSYCHOLOGY, ADDRESSING VARIOUS ISSUES SUCH AS ANXIETY, POSTURAL BALANCE, MIGRAINE, ACADEMIC PERFORMANCE, AND CHILDHOOD NEGLECT. ANXIETY, STRESS, AND DEPRESSION WERE OTHER COMMON DENOMINATORS. EIGHT STUDIES WERE ON CARDIORESPIRATORY SYSTEMS, INCLUDING EXERCISE CAPACITY, CARDIAC REHABILITATION, MYOCARDIAL INFARCTION, AND HYPERTENSION. THREE STUDIES WERE ON DIABETES, EVALUATING THE EFFECT OF YOGA. FIVE STUDIES FOCUSED ON COGNITION, HEALTH STATUS, AND AUTONOMIC REGULATION AND FEW OTHERS INCLUDED CANCERS, INFERTILITY, ULCERATIVE COLITIS, URINARY INCONTINENCE, RESTLESS LEG SYNDROME, RHEUMATOID ARTHRITIS, CHRONIC PAIN, AND METABOLIC SYNDROME. FINALLY, MOST STUDIES WERE ON NONCOMMUNICABLE DISEASES WITH ONE EXCEPTION, HUMAN IMMUNODEFICIENCY VIRUS; TWO RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED TRIALS WERE DEDICATED TO IT. CONCLUSIONS: YOGA HAS BEEN STUDIED UNDER A WIDE VARIETY OF CLINICOPATHOLOGICAL CONDITIONS IN THE YEAR 2020. THIS LANDSCAPE REVIEW INTENDS TO PROVIDE AN IDEA OF THE ROLE OF YOGA IN VARIOUS CLINICAL CONDITIONS AND ITS FUTURE THERAPEUTIC IMPLICATIONS. 2022 6 1410 35 IMPACT OF YOGA ON PSYCHOPATHOLOGIES AND QUALITY OF LIFE IN PERSONS WITH HIV: A RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED STUDY. BACKGROUND: EVIDENCE SUGGESTS THAT INDIVIDUALS WITH HUMAN IMMUNODEFICIENCY VIRUS (HIV) OFTEN EXHIBIT POOR PHYSICAL AND MENTAL HEALTH, WHICH CONTRIBUTES TO A REDUCED QUALITY OF LIFE (QOL). YOGA IS A FORM OF ALTERNATIVE THERAPY THAT HAS POSITIVE INFLUENCES ON GENERAL HEALTH AND QOL. OBJECTIVES: THIS STUDY EXAMINED THE EFFECTS OF YOGA ON I) ANXIETY, DEPRESSION, AND PSYCHOLOGICAL WELL-BEING AND II) QOL AMONG INDIVIDUALS WITH AN HIV POSITIVE STATUS. METHODOLOGY: SIXTY INDIVIDUALS WITH HIV-POSITIVE (AGED 30-50 YEARS) FROM REHABILITATION CENTRES ACROSS BANGALORE WERE RANDOMLY ASSIGNED TO THE YOGA INTERVENTION GROUP (N=30; 11 MEN) OR THE WAIT-LISTED CONTROL GROUP (N=30; 10 MEN). PARTICIPANTS IN THE YOGA GROUP UNDERWENT 8 WEEKS OF INTENSE YOGA PRACTICE PERFORMED AN HOUR A DAY FOR 5 DAYS A WEEK. THE YOGA PRACTICE CONSISTED OF PHYSICAL POSTURES, BREATHING PRACTICES, RELAXATION TECHNIQUES, AND MEDITATION. PARTICIPANTS IN THE WAIT-LISTED CONTROL GROUP FOLLOWED THEIR NORMAL ROUTINE. ANXIETY, FATIGUE, DEPRESSION, AND QOL WERE ASSESSED TWICE FOR ALL SUBJECTS IN EACH GROUP - ONCE AT THE START OF THE STUDY TO ESTABLISH A BASELINE AND ONCE MORE AT THE END OF THE 2-MONTH STUDY PERIOD TO ASSESS ANY CHANGES. DATA ANALYSIS WAS PERFORMED ON THE ASSESSMENTS USING SPSS SOFTWARE VERSION 10. RESULTS: BETWEEN GROUP ANALYSIS DEMONSTRATED THAT A SIGNIFICANTLY DIFFERENT REDUCTION IN ANXIETY (P<0.001), DEPRESSION (P<0.001), AND FATIGUE (P<0.001) WAS OBSERVED IN THE YOGA GROUP COMPARED TO THE CONTROL GROUP, AS WELL AS SIGNIFICANT IMPROVEMENTS IN WELL-BEING (P<0.001) AND ALL DOMAINS OF QOL (P<0.001) IN THE YOGA GROUP COMPARED TO THE CONTROL GROUP. CONCLUSION: THIS STUDY INDICATES THAT YOGA INTERVENTION APPEARS TO IMPROVE THE PSYCHOLOGICAL HEALTH AND QOL OF INDIVIDUALS WHO ARE HIV-POSITIVE. THEREFORE, BASED ON THESE FINDINGS, YOGA MAY BE RECOMMENDED AS A COMPLEMENTARY THERAPY TO ENHANCE CONVENTIONAL HIV CARE. 2019 7 805 22 EFFECT OF YOGA ON ANTIRETROVIRAL ADHERENCE POSTINCARCERATION IN HIV+ INDIVIDUALS. THE NEGATIVE IMPACTS OF STRESS ON ANTIRETROVIRAL THERAPY (ART) ADHERENCE AND THE MANY STRESSORS FACED BY PEOPLE RETURNING FROM INCARCERATION SUPPORT THE NEED FOR STRESS REDUCTION INTERVENTIONS FOR THIS POPULATION. WE HYPOTHESIZED THAT 37 RETURNING CITIZENS LIVING WITH HIV AND SUBSTANCE USE PROBLEMS RANDOMIZED TO A 12-SESSION WEEKLY YOGA INTERVENTION WOULD EXPERIENCE IMPROVED ART ADHERENCE, LOWER VIRAL LOADS, AND LOWER HEART RATE AND BLOOD PRESSURE AS COMPARED TO 36 PEOPLE RANDOMIZED TO TREATMENT AS USUAL (TAU). WE FOUND THAT ART ADHERENCE INCREASED FOR YOGA PARTICIPANTS AND DECREASED FOR TAU PARTICIPANTS. THERE WERE NO SIGNIFICANT CHANGES FOR VIRAL LOAD, HEART RATE, OR BLOOD PRESSURE. THE LACK OF STATISTICALLY SIGNIFICANT EFFECTS MAY BE DUE TO A SMALL SAMPLE SIZE AND ENROLLMENT OF PEOPLE LARGELY IN HIV TREATMENT. STUDIES WITH LARGER SAMPLE SIZES AND PARTICIPANTS EXHIBITING LOW ART ADHERENCE ARE WARRANTED TO BETTER UNDERSTAND YOGA'S IMPACT. 2020 8 2543 39 YOGA FOR ASTHMA. BACKGROUND: ASTHMA IS A COMMON CHRONIC INFLAMMATORY DISORDER AFFECTING ABOUT 300 MILLION PEOPLE WORLDWIDE. AS A HOLISTIC THERAPY, YOGA HAS THE POTENTIAL TO RELIEVE BOTH THE PHYSICAL AND PSYCHOLOGICAL SUFFERING OF PEOPLE WITH ASTHMA, AND ITS POPULARITY HAS EXPANDED GLOBALLY. A NUMBER OF CLINICAL TRIALS HAVE BEEN CARRIED OUT TO EVALUATE THE EFFECTS OF YOGA PRACTICE, WITH INCONSISTENT RESULTS. OBJECTIVES: TO ASSESS THE EFFECTS OF YOGA IN PEOPLE WITH ASTHMA. SEARCH METHODS: WE SYSTEMATICALLY SEARCHED THE COCHRANE AIRWAYS GROUP REGISTER OF TRIALS, WHICH IS DERIVED FROM SYSTEMATIC SEARCHES OF BIBLIOGRAPHIC DATABASES INCLUDING THE COCHRANE CENTRAL REGISTER OF CONTROLLED TRIALS (CENTRAL), MEDLINE, EMBASE, CINAHL, AMED, AND PSYCINFO, AND HANDSEARCHING OF RESPIRATORY JOURNALS AND MEETING ABSTRACTS. WE ALSO SEARCHED PEDRO. WE SEARCHED CLINICALTRIALS.GOV AND THE WHO ICTRP SEARCH PORTAL. WE SEARCHED ALL DATABASES FROM THEIR INCEPTION TO 22 JULY 2015, AND USED NO RESTRICTION ON LANGUAGE OF PUBLICATION. WE CHECKED THE REFERENCE LISTS OF ELIGIBLE STUDIES AND RELEVANT REVIEW ARTICLES FOR ADDITIONAL STUDIES. WE ATTEMPTED TO CONTACT INVESTIGATORS OF ELIGIBLE STUDIES AND EXPERTS IN THE FIELD TO LEARN OF OTHER PUBLISHED AND UNPUBLISHED STUDIES. SELECTION CRITERIA: WE INCLUDED RANDOMISED CONTROLLED TRIALS (RCTS) THAT COMPARED YOGA WITH USUAL CARE (OR NO INTERVENTION) OR SHAM INTERVENTION IN PEOPLE WITH ASTHMA AND REPORTED AT LEAST ONE OF THE FOLLOWING OUTCOMES: QUALITY OF LIFE, ASTHMA SYMPTOM SCORE, ASTHMA CONTROL, LUNG FUNCTION MEASURES, ASTHMA MEDICATION USAGE, AND ADVERSE EVENTS. DATA COLLECTION AND ANALYSIS: WE EXTRACTED BIBLIOGRAPHIC INFORMATION, CHARACTERISTICS OF PARTICIPANTS, CHARACTERISTICS OF INTERVENTIONS AND CONTROLS, CHARACTERISTICS OF METHODOLOGY, AND RESULTS FOR THE OUTCOMES OF OUR INTEREST FROM ELIGIBLE STUDIES. FOR CONTINUOUS OUTCOMES, WE USED MEAN DIFFERENCE (MD) WITH 95% CONFIDENCE INTERVAL (CI) TO DENOTE THE TREATMENT EFFECTS, IF THE OUTCOMES WERE MEASURED BY THE SAME SCALE ACROSS STUDIES. ALTERNATIVELY, IF THE OUTCOMES WERE MEASURED BY DIFFERENT SCALES ACROSS STUDIES, WE USED STANDARDISED MEAN DIFFERENCE (SMD) WITH 95% CI. FOR DICHOTOMOUS OUTCOMES, WE USED RISK RATIO (RR) WITH 95% CI TO MEASURE THE TREATMENT EFFECTS. WE PERFORMED META-ANALYSIS WITH REVIEW MANAGER 5.3. WE USED THE FIXED-EFFECT MODEL TO POOL THE DATA, UNLESS THERE WAS SUBSTANTIAL HETEROGENEITY AMONG STUDIES, IN WHICH CASE WE USED THE RANDOM-EFFECTS MODEL INSTEAD. FOR OUTCOMES INAPPROPRIATE OR IMPOSSIBLE TO POOL QUANTITATIVELY, WE CONDUCTED A DESCRIPTIVE ANALYSIS AND SUMMARISED THE FINDINGS NARRATIVELY. MAIN RESULTS: WE INCLUDED 15 RCTS WITH A TOTAL OF 1048 PARTICIPANTS. MOST OF THE TRIALS WERE CONDUCTED IN INDIA, FOLLOWED BY EUROPE AND THE UNITED STATES. THE MAJORITY OF PARTICIPANTS WERE ADULTS OF BOTH SEXES WITH MILD TO MODERATE ASTHMA FOR SIX MONTHS TO MORE THAN 23 YEARS. FIVE STUDIES INCLUDED YOGA BREATHING ALONE, WHILE THE OTHER STUDIES ASSESSED YOGA INTERVENTIONS THAT INCLUDED BREATHING, POSTURE, AND MEDITATION. INTERVENTIONS LASTED FROM TWO WEEKS TO 54 MONTHS, FOR NO MORE THAN SIX MONTHS IN THE MAJORITY OF STUDIES. THE RISK OF BIAS WAS LOW ACROSS ALL DOMAINS IN ONE STUDY AND UNCLEAR OR HIGH IN AT LEAST ONE DOMAIN FOR THE REMAINDER.THERE WAS SOME EVIDENCE THAT YOGA MAY IMPROVE QUALITY OF LIFE (MD IN ASTHMA QUALITY OF LIFE QUESTIONNAIRE (AQLQ) SCORE PER ITEM 0.57 UNITS ON A 7-POINT SCALE, 95% CI 0.37 TO 0.77; 5 STUDIES; 375 PARTICIPANTS), IMPROVE SYMPTOMS (SMD 0.37, 95% CI 0.09 TO 0.65; 3 STUDIES; 243 PARTICIPANTS), AND REDUCE MEDICATION USAGE (RR 5.35, 95% CI 1.29 TO 22.11; 2 STUDIES) IN PEOPLE WITH ASTHMA. THE MD FOR AQLQ SCORE EXCEEDED THE MINIMAL CLINICALLY IMPORTANT DIFFERENCE (MCID) OF 0.5, BUT WHETHER THE MEAN CHANGES EXCEEDED THE MCID FOR ASTHMA SYMPTOMS IS UNCERTAIN DUE TO THE LACK OF AN ESTABLISHED MCID IN THE SEVERITY SCORES USED IN THE INCLUDED STUDIES. THE EFFECTS OF YOGA ON CHANGE FROM BASELINE FORCED EXPIRATORY VOLUME IN ONE SECOND (MD 0.04 LITRES, 95% CI -0.10 TO 0.19; 7 STUDIES; 340 PARTICIPANTS; I(2) = 68%) WERE NOT STATISTICALLY SIGNIFICANT. TWO STUDIES INDICATED IMPROVED ASTHMA CONTROL, BUT DUE TO VERY SIGNIFICANT HETEROGENEITY (I(2) = 98%) WE DID NOT POOL DATA. NO SERIOUS ADVERSE EVENTS ASSOCIATED WITH YOGA WERE REPORTED, BUT THE DATA ON THIS OUTCOME WAS LIMITED. AUTHORS' CONCLUSIONS: WE FOUND MODERATE-QUALITY EVIDENCE THAT YOGA PROBABLY LEADS TO SMALL IMPROVEMENTS IN QUALITY OF LIFE AND SYMPTOMS IN PEOPLE WITH ASTHMA. THERE IS MORE UNCERTAINTY ABOUT POTENTIAL ADVERSE EFFECTS OF YOGA AND ITS IMPACT ON LUNG FUNCTION AND MEDICATION USAGE. RCTS WITH A LARGE SAMPLE SIZE AND HIGH METHODOLOGICAL AND REPORTING QUALITY ARE NEEDED TO CONFIRM THE EFFECTS OF YOGA FOR ASTHMA. 2016 9 2013 22 SUDARSHAN KRIYA YOGA: A BREATH OF HOPE DURING COVID-19 PANDEMIC. IMPORTANT COUNTER MEASURES TO COMBAT AN INFECTIOUS DISEASE PANDEMIC INCLUDE VACCINATION, ANTIVIRAL THERAPY, AND IMMUNOMODULATION THERAPY. VACCINATIONS ARE DISEASE SPECIFIC AND MOREOVER STRAIN SPECIFIC, SO THE PROTECTION PROVIDED IS ALSO SPECIFIC AND LIMITED. ANTIVIRAL THERAPIES ARE COSTLY AND REQUIRE BULK PRODUCTION OF DRUGS, HENCE GLOBALLY THERE IS AN INCREASED INTEREST TOWARD LOW-RISK, COST-EFFECTIVE COMPLEMENTARY ALTERNATIVE THERAPIES, SUCH AS YOGA AND AYURVEDA TO TACKLE THE INFECTIOUS PANDEMIC, CORONAVIRUS DISEASE 2019 (COVID-19). THERE IS CLINICAL EVIDENCE AVAILABLE ON THE POTENTIAL COMPLEMENTARY ROLE OF YOGIC PRACTICES IN THE MANAGEMENT OF NONCOMMUNICABLE AND COMMUNICABLE DISEASES. VARIOUS ONLINE DATABASES WERE SEARCHED FOR ARTICLES PUBLISHED BETWEEN 2000 AND 2020. DATABASES EXPLORED WERE MEDLINE, EMBASE, INDIAN CITATION INDEX, PSYCINFO, INDEX MEDICUS FOR SOUTH-EAST ASIA REGION, AND GOOGLE SCHOLAR. ALL SEARCH RESULTS WERE SCREENED, AND ARTICLES RELATED TO KEYWORDS SUCH AS COVID-19, YOGA THERAPY, AND SUDARSHAN KRIYA YOGA (SKY) WERE SELECTED FOR DATA EXTRACTION. QUALITY OF THE STUDIES INCLUDED WAS EVALUATED ON THE BASIS OF THE CONSTRUCT VALIDITY, CONTENT VALIDITY, RELEVANCE, BIAS, CREDIBILITY RELATING TO INFORMATION, AND DATA SOURCES. SKY IS A UNIQUE YOGIC PRACTICE THAT INCLUDES SPECIFIC SEQUENTIAL BREATHING TECHNIQUES. IT BALANCES THE AUTONOMIC NERVOUS SYSTEM AND THUS CAN ALLEVIATE ANXIETY, ROUTINE STRESS, DEPRESSION, STRESS-RELATED MEDICAL DISORDERS, AND POSTTRAUMATIC STRESS. IT POTENTIATES NATURAL HOST IMMUNE DEFENSES THAT ARE ESSENTIAL TO TACKLE A PLETHORA OF MICROBIAL INFECTIONS. THIS NARRATIVE REVIEW ARTICLE PROVIDES AN OVERVIEW OF POTENTIAL THERAPEUTIC BENEFITS THAT SKY CAN OFFER TO THE POPULATION AT LARGE DURING THIS COVID-19 PANDEMIC. 2021 10 2121 27 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 11 1927 21 ROLE OF YOGA IN CARDIAC DISEASE AND REHABILITATION. PURPOSE: CARDIOVASCULAR DISEASE CONTINUES TO BE THE LEADING CAUSE OF MORBIDITY AND MORTALITY AROUND THE WORLD. YOGA, A COMBINATION OF PHYSICAL POSTURES (ASANA), BREATHING EXERCISES (PRANAYAMA), AND MEDITATION (DHYANA), HAS GAINED INCREASING RECOGNITION AS A FORM OF MIND-BODY EXERCISE. IN THIS NARRATIVE REVIEW, WE INTENDED TO REVIEW THE EMERGING EVIDENCE ASSESSING THE PHYSIOLOGIC AND CLINICAL EFFECTS OF YOGA ON THE CARDIOVASCULAR SYSTEM AND THE POTENTIAL ROLE OF YOGA AS A COMPONENT OF COMPREHENSIVE CARDIAC REHABILITATION. METHODS: WE SEARCHED PUBMED, GOOGLE SCHOLAR, EMBASE, AND COCHRANE DATABASES FOR LITERATURE RELATED TO CARDIOVASCULAR EFFECTS OF YOGA FROM INCEPTION UP UNTIL 2017. RESULTS: YOGA HAS BEEN SHOWN TO HAVE FAVORABLE EFFECTS ON SYSTEMIC INFLAMMATION, STRESS, THE CARDIAC AUTONOMIC NERVOUS SYSTEM, AND TRADITIONAL AND EMERGING CARDIOVASCULAR RISK FACTORS. CONCLUSIONS: YOGA HAS SHOWN PROMISE AS A USEFUL LIFESTYLE INTERVENTION THAT CAN BE INCORPORATED INTO CARDIOVASCULAR DISEASE MANAGEMENT ALGORITHMS. ALTHOUGH MANY INVESTIGATORS HAVE REPORTED THE CLINICAL BENEFITS OF YOGA IN REDUCING CARDIOVASCULAR EVENTS, MORBIDITY, AND MORTALITY, EVIDENCE SUPPORTING THESE CONCLUSIONS IS SOMEWHAT LIMITED, THEREBY EMPHASIZING THE NEED FOR LARGE, WELL-DESIGNED RANDOMIZED TRIALS THAT MINIMIZE BIAS AND METHODOLOGICAL DRAWBACKS. 2019 12 1407 18 IMPACT OF YOGA ON INFLAMMATORY BIOMARKERS: A SYSTEMATIC REVIEW. BACKGROUND: MANY CHRONIC CONDITIONS, INCLUDING HEART DISEASE, CANCER, AND RHEUMATOID ARTHRITIS, ARE ASSOCIATED WITH UNDERLYING CHRONIC INFLAMMATORY PROCESSES. LITERATURE REVIEWS HAVE ANALYZED A VARIETY OF INTEGRATIVE THERAPIES AND THEIR RELATIONSHIPS WITH CHRONIC INFLAMMATION. THIS SYSTEMATIC REVIEW IS UNIQUE IN REPORTING SOLELY ON YOGA'S RELATIONSHIP WITH INFLAMMATION. ITS PURPOSE WAS TO SYNTHESIZE CURRENT LITERATURE EXAMINING THE IMPACT OF YOGA INTERVENTIONS ON INFLAMMATORY BIOMARKERS IN ADULTS WITH CHRONIC INFLAMMATORY-RELATED DISORDERS. METHOD: SEARCHES OF SEVERAL ELECTRONIC DATABASES WERE CONDUCTED. INCLUSION CRITERIA WERE (A) ENGLISH LANGUAGE, (B) SAMPLE AGE >18 YEARS OLD, (C) YOGA INTERVENTIONS INVOLVING POSTURES WITH OR WITHOUT YOGA BREATHING AND/OR MEDITATION, AND (D) MEASURED INFLAMMATORY BIOMARKERS. RESULTS: THE FINAL REVIEW INCLUDED 15 PRIMARY STUDIES. OF THESE, SEVEN WERE RATED AS EXCELLENT AND EIGHT AS AVERAGE OR FAIR. THERE WAS CONSIDERABLE VARIABILITY IN YOGA TYPES, COMPONENTS, FREQUENCY, SESSION LENGTH, INTERVENTION DURATION, AND INTENSITY. THE MOST COMMON BIOMARKERS MEASURED WERE INTERLEUKIN-6 ( N = 11), C-REACTIVE PROTEIN ( N = 10), AND TUMOR NECROSIS FACTOR ( N = 8). MOST STUDIES REPORTED POSITIVE EFFECTS ON INFLAMMATORY BIOMARKERS ( N = 11) FROM BASELINE TO POST YOGA INTERVENTION. ANALYSIS OF THE DOSE SHOWED HIGHER TOTAL DOSE (>1,000 MIN) RESULTED IN GREATER IMPROVEMENTS IN INFLAMMATION. CONCLUSION: THIS REVIEW SUGGESTS THAT YOGA CAN BE A VIABLE INTERVENTION TO REDUCE INFLAMMATION ACROSS A MULTITUDE OF CHRONIC CONDITIONS. FUTURE STUDIES WITH DETAILED DESCRIPTIONS OF YOGA INTERVENTIONS, MEASUREMENT OF NEW AND WELL-ESTABLISHED INFLAMMATORY BIOMARKERS, AND LARGER SAMPLE SIZES ARE WARRANTED TO ADVANCE THE SCIENCE AND CORROBORATE RESULTS. 2019 13 2035 24 TELE-YOGA FOR CHRONIC PAIN: CURRENT STATUS AND FUTURE DIRECTIONS. PAIN IS A PERVASIVE, DEBILITATING DISORDER THAT IS RESISTANT TO LONG-TERM PHARMACOLOGICAL INTERVENTIONS. ALTHOUGH PSYCHOLOGICAL THERAPIES SUCH AS COGNITIVE BEHAVIOR THERAPY DEMONSTRATE MODERATE EFFICACY, MANY INDIVIDUALS CONTINUE TO HAVE ONGOING DIFFICULTIES FOLLOWING TREATMENT. THERE IS A CURRENT TREND TO ESTABLISH COMPLEMENTARY AND INTEGRATIVE HEALTH INTERVENTIONS FOR CHRONIC PAIN, FOR WHICH YOGA HAS BEEN FOUND TO HAVE EXCITING POTENTIAL. NEVERTHELESS, AN IMPORTANT CONSIDERATION WITHIN THE FIELD IS ACCESSIBILITY TO ADEQUATE CARE. TELEHEALTH CAN BE USED TO PROVIDE REAL-TIME INTERACTIVE VIDEO CONFERENCING LEADING TO INCREASED ACCESS TO HEALTH CARE FOR INDIVIDUALS LOCATED REMOTELY OR WHO OTHERWISE HAVE DIFFICULTY ACCESSING SERVICES, PERHAPS THROUGH ISSUES OF MOBILITY OR PROXIMITY OF ADEQUATE SERVICES. THIS ARTICLE ASSESSES THE CURRENT STATUS AND FEASIBILITY OF IMPLEMENTING TELE-YOGA FOR CHRONIC PAIN. METHODOLOGICAL LIMITATIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS FOR FUTURE RESEARCH ARE DISCUSSED. 2018 14 842 23 EFFECT OF YOGA ON PSYCHOLOGICAL DISTRESS AMONG WOMEN RECEIVING TREATMENT FOR INFERTILITY. BACKGROUND: INFERTILITY AMONG WOMEN HAS BEEN ASSOCIATED WITH SIGNIFICANT PSYCHOLOGICAL DISTRESS, ANXIETY, AND DEPRESSION. YOGA THERAPY HAS BEEN FOUND TO BE USEFUL IN THE MANAGEMENT OF ANXIETY, DEPRESSION AND PSYCHOLOGICAL DISTRESS. AIM: TO REVIEW STUDIES ON THE EFFECTIVENESS OF YOGA IN REDUCING PSYCHOLOGICAL DISTRESS AND IMPROVING CLINICAL OUTCOMES AMONG WOMEN RECEIVING TREATMENT FOR INFERTILITY. METHODOLOGY: PUBMED, SCIENCEDIRECT, AND GOOGLE SCHOLAR DATABASES WERE SEARCHED FOR STUDIES USING THE FOLLOWING INCLUSION CRITERIA: STUDIES PUBLISHED IN ENGLISH, THOSE PUBLISHED BETWEEN 2000 AND 2018, PUBLISHED IN PEER-REVIEWED JOURNALS, AND THOSE WITH YOGA AS AN INTERVENTION. REVIEW ARTICLES, STUDIES WITHOUT ANY YOGA INTERVENTIONS FOR INFERTILITY, AND MALE INFERTILITY WERE EXCLUDED. THE KEYWORDS INCLUDED FOR THE LITERATURE SEARCH WERE: YOGA, MINDFULNESS, RELAXATION TECHNIQUE, STRESS, DISTRESS, ANXIETY, INFERTILITY, IN VITRO FERTILIZATION (IVF), AND ASSISTED REPRODUCTIVE TECHNOLOGY (ART). RESULTS: THREE STUDIES SATISFIED THE SELECTION CRITERIA. TWO STUDIES INVOLVED HATHA YOGA INTERVENTION AND ONE STUDY USED STRUCTURED YOGA PROGRAM. THE VARIABLES ASSESSED IN THESE STUDIES WERE: (1) ANXIETY, (2) DEPRESSION, (3) EMOTIONAL DISTRESS, AND (4) FERTILITY-RELATED QUALITY OF LIFE. ALL THE STUDIES REPORTED AN IMPROVEMENT IN THE ANXIETY SCORES AFTER YOGA INTERVENTION. CONCLUSION: YOGA THERAPY MAY BE POTENTIALLY USEFUL IN IMPROVING ANXIETY SCORES AMONG WOMEN SUFFERING FROM INFERTILITY. MORE STUDIES ARE NEEDED IN THIS AREA TO ESTABLISH ROLE OF YOGA AS AN ADJUVANT DURING THE TREATMENT OF INFERTILITY. 2020 15 2014 20 SUDARSHAN KRIYA YOGA: BREATHING FOR HEALTH. BREATHING TECHNIQUES ARE REGULARLY RECOMMENDED FOR RELAXATION, STRESS MANAGEMENT, CONTROL OF PSYCHOPHYSIOLOGICAL STATES, AND TO IMPROVE ORGAN FUNCTION. YOGIC BREATHING, DEFINED AS A MANIPULATION OF BREATH MOVEMENT, HAS BEEN SHOWN TO POSITIVELY AFFECT IMMUNE FUNCTION, AUTONOMIC NERVOUS SYSTEM IMBALANCES, AND PSYCHOLOGICAL OR STRESS-RELATED DISORDERS. THE AIM OF THIS STUDY WAS TO ASSESS AND PROVIDE A COMPREHENSIVE REVIEW OF THE PHYSIOLOGICAL MECHANISMS, THE MIND-BODY CONNECTION, AND THE BENEFITS OF SUDARSHAN KRIYA YOGA (SKY) IN A WIDE RANGE OF CLINICAL CONDITIONS. VARIOUS ONLINE DATABASES SEARCHED WERE MEDLINE, PSYCHINFO, EMBASE, AND GOOGLE SCHOLAR. ALL THE RESULTS WERE CAREFULLY SCREENED AND ARTICLES ON SKY WERE SELECTED. THE REFERENCES FROM THESE ARTICLES WERE CHECKED TO FIND ANY OTHER POTENTIALLY RELEVANT ARTICLES. SKY, A UNIQUE YOGIC BREATHING PRACTICE, INVOLVES SEVERAL TYPES OF CYCLICAL BREATHING PATTERNS, RANGING FROM SLOW AND CALMING TO RAPID AND STIMULATING. THERE IS MOUNTING EVIDENCE TO SUGGEST THAT SKY CAN BE A BENEFICIAL, LOW-RISK, LOW-COST ADJUNCT TO THE TREATMENT OF STRESS, ANXIETY, POST-TRAUMATIC STRESS DISORDER, DEPRESSION, STRESS-RELATED MEDICAL ILLNESSES, SUBSTANCE ABUSE, AND REHABILITATION OF CRIMINAL OFFENDERS. 2013 16 1103 25 EFFECTS OF YOGA VERSUS HYDROTHERAPY TRAINING ON HEALTH-RELATED QUALITY OF LIFE AND EXERCISE CAPACITY IN PATIENTS WITH HEART FAILURE: A RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED STUDY. AIMS: THE AIMS OF THIS STUDY WERE TO DETERMINE WHETHER YOGA AND HYDROTHERAPY TRAINING HAD AN EQUAL EFFECT ON THE HEALTH-RELATED QUALITY OF LIFE IN PATIENTS WITH HEART FAILURE AND TO COMPARE THE EFFECTS ON EXERCISE CAPACITY, CLINICAL OUTCOMES, AND SYMPTOMS OF ANXIETY AND DEPRESSION BETWEEN AND WITHIN THE TWO GROUPS. METHODS: THE DESIGN WAS A RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED NON-INFERIORITY STUDY. A TOTAL OF 40 PATIENTS, 30% WOMEN (MEAN+/-SD AGE 64.9+/-8.9 YEARS) WITH HEART FAILURE WERE RANDOMIZED TO AN INTERVENTION OF 12 WEEKS, EITHER PERFORMING YOGA OR TRAINING WITH HYDROTHERAPY FOR 45-60 MINUTES TWICE A WEEK. EVALUATION AT BASELINE AND AFTER 12 WEEKS INCLUDED SELF-REPORTED HEALTH-RELATED QUALITY OF LIFE, A SIX-MINUTE WALK TEST, A SIT-TO-STAND TEST, CLINICAL VARIABLES, AND SYMPTOMS OF ANXIETY AND DEPRESSION. RESULTS: YOGA AND HYDROTHERAPY HAD AN EQUAL IMPACT ON QUALITY OF LIFE, EXERCISE CAPACITY, CLINICAL OUTCOMES, AND SYMPTOMS OF ANXIETY AND DEPRESSION. WITHIN BOTH GROUPS, EXERCISE CAPACITY SIGNIFICANTLY IMPROVED (HYDROTHERAPY P=0.02; YOGA P=0.008) AND SYMPTOMS OF ANXIETY DECREASED (HYDROTHERAPY P=0.03; YOGA P=0.01). PATIENTS IN THE YOGA GROUP SIGNIFICANTLY IMPROVED THEIR HEALTH AS RATED BY EQ-VAS ( P=0.004) AND DISEASE-SPECIFIC QUALITY OF LIFE IN THE DOMAINS SYMPTOM FREQUENCY ( P=0.03), SELF-EFFICACY ( P=0.01), CLINICAL SUMMARY AS A COMBINED MEASURE OF SYMPTOMS AND SOCIAL FACTORS ( P=0.05), AND OVERALL SUMMARY SCORE ( P=0.04). SYMPTOMS OF DEPRESSION WERE DECREASED IN THIS GROUP ( P=0.005). IN THE HYDROTHERAPY GROUP, LOWER LIMB MUSCLE STRENGTH IMPROVED SIGNIFICANTLY ( P=0.01). CONCLUSIONS: YOGA MAY BE AN ALTERNATIVE OR COMPLEMENTARY OPTION TO ESTABLISHED FORMS OF EXERCISE TRAINING SUCH AS HYDROTHERAPY FOR IMPROVEMENT IN HEALTH-RELATED QUALITY OF LIFE AND MAY DECREASE DEPRESSIVE SYMPTOMS IN PATIENTS WITH HEART FAILURE. 2017 17 1061 27 EFFECTS OF YOGA ON HEALTH-RELATED QUALITY, PHYSICAL HEALTH AND PSYCHOLOGICAL HEALTH IN WOMEN WITH BREAST CANCER RECEIVING CHEMOTHERAPY: A SYSTEMATIC REVIEW AND META-ANALYSIS. BACKGROUND: YOGA RECEIVE MORE ATTENTION FROM BREAST CANCER PATIENTS, HOWEVER ITS FEASIBILITY AND EFFICACY DURING CHEMOTHERAPY REMAINS CONFLICTING. WE PERFORMED THIS SYSTEMATIC REVIEW TO ASSESS THE EFFECTS OF YOGA ON HEALTH-RELATED QUALITY, PHYSICAL HEALTH AND PSYCHOLOGICAL HEALTH IN BREAST CANCER PATIENTS UNDERGOING CHEMOTHERAPY. METHODS: A SYSTEMATIC SEARCH WAS CONDUCTED TO RETRIEVE RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED TRIALS (RCTS) WHICH INVESTIGATED THE COMPARATIVE EFFICACY OF YOGA VERSUS COMPARATORS SUCH AS USUAL CARE AMONG BREAST CANCER PATIENTS FOR HEALTH-RELATED QUALITY, PHYSICAL HEALTH AND PSYCHOLOGICAL HEALTH IN PUBMED, EMBASE, COCHRANE CENTRAL REGISTER OF CONTROLLED TRIALS (CNETRAL), NURSING AND ALLIED HEALTH LITERATURE (CINAHL), CHINESE BIOMEDICAL LITERATURE (CBM) DATABASE, CHINA SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY JOURNAL (CSTJ) DATABASE, CHINA NATIONAL KNOWLEDGE INFRASTRUCTURE (CNKI), AND WANGFANG DATABASE FROM INCEPTION TO DECEMBER 2018. THE LATEST SEARCH WAS UPDATED ON SEPTEMBER 2020. ALL ANALYSES WERE COMPLETED USING REVMAN VERSION 5.3. RESULTS: SEVEN TRIALS INVOLVING 693 BREAST CANCER PATIENTS MET INCLUSION CRITERIA. META-ANALYSIS INDICATED A SHORT-TERM IMPROVEMENT IN FATIGUE [STANDARD MEAN DIFFERENCE (SMD), -0.62; 95% CONFIDENCE INTERVAL (CI), -1.17 TO -0.07], SLEEP DISTURBANCE (SMD, -0.34; 95% CI, -0.55 TO -0.12), DEPRESSION (SMD, -0.50; 95% CI, -0.70 TO -0.31) ANXIETY (SMD, -0.50; 95% CI, -0.70 TO -0.31), AND HEALTH-RELATED QUALITY OF LIFE (QOL) (SMD, 0.72; 95% CI, -0.12 TO 1.56) IN THE YOGA GROUP; HOWEVER BENEFICIAL MEDIUM- AND LONG-TERM EFFECTS IN FATIGUE, SLEEP DISTURBANCE WERE NOT IDENTIFIED. MOREOVER, QUALITATIVE ANALYSES SUGGESTED THAT YOGA WAS NOT ASSOCIATED WITH DECREASED ADVERSE EVENTS (AES) COMPARED WITH CONTROL GROUPS. CONCLUSIONS: YOGA MAY BENEFIT TO REDUCE FATIGUE, DEPRESSION AND ANXIETY, IMPROVE SLEEP DISTURBANCE, AND IMPROVE QOL IN BREAST CANCER PATIENTS RECEIVING CHEMOTHERAPY IN THE SHORT-TERM; HOWEVER, MEDIUM- AND LONG-TERM EFFECTS SHOULD BE FURTHER ESTABLISHED OWING TO LIMITATIONS. 2021 18 477 31 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 19 2831 28 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 20 2454 28 YOGA AS A COMPLEMENTARY THERAPY FOR METABOLIC SYNDROME: A NARRATIVE REVIEW. METABOLIC SYNDROME (MS) IS ASSOCIATED WITH A SEDENTARY AND STRESSFUL LIFESTYLE AND AFFECTS UNDERACTIVE PEOPLE DISPROPORTIONATELY. YOGA IS CONSIDERED TO BE A LOW-IMPACT MIND-BODY STRESS-RELIEVING EXERCISE, AND RESEARCHERS ARE INCREASING THEIR FOCUS ON THE BENEFITS OF YOGA FOR MANAGING METABOLIC DISORDERS. IT IS ALSO IMPORTANT FOR PHYSICIANS AND HEALTH CARE PROFESSIONALS TO UNDERSTAND THE THERAPEUTIC EFFICACY OF YOGA INTERVENTION, IN TERMS OF ITS TYPE, DURATION AND FREQUENCY ON VARIOUS MS RISK FACTORS. THE PRESENT REVIEW SUMMARIZES THE CURRENT SCIENTIFIC UNDERSTANDING OF THE EFFECTS OF YOGA ON MS RISK FACTORS SUCH AS GLUCOSE HOMEOSTASIS MARKERS, LIPID PROFILE, ADIPOCYTOKINES AND CARDIOVASCULAR RISK FACTORS, AND DISCUSSES THE POSSIBLE MECHANISMS OF ACTION. MEDLINE, PUBMED, SCOPUS AND COCHRANE LIBRARY WERE SEARCHED FROM THEIR INCEPTION UP TO DECEMBER 2019, USING THE KEYWORDS "METABOLIC SYNDROME," "DIABETES," "CARDIOVASCULAR DISEASES," "OBESITY" AND "YOGA." THE LITERATURE SUMMARIZED IN THIS REVIEW HAVE SHOWN MIXED EFFECTS OF YOGA ON MS RISK FACTORS AND DO NOT PROVIDE ROBUST EVIDENCE FOR ITS EFFICACY. MORE RIGOROUS RESEARCH AND WELL-DESIGNED TRIALS THAT HAVE A HIGHER STANDARD OF METHODOLOGY AND EVALUATE YOGA'S LONG-TERM IMPACTS ON MS ARE NEEDED. UNDERSTANDING YOGA'S BIOCHEMICAL AND MOLECULAR MECHANISMS OF ACTION ON VARIOUS METABOLIC PATHWAYS IS ALSO NEEDED. 2021