1 518 143 COMPARING ONCE- VERSUS TWICE-WEEKLY YOGA CLASSES FOR CHRONIC LOW BACK PAIN IN PREDOMINANTLY LOW INCOME MINORITIES: A RANDOMIZED DOSING TRIAL. BACKGROUND. PREVIOUS STUDIES HAVE DEMONSTRATED THAT ONCE-WEEKLY YOGA CLASSES ARE EFFECTIVE FOR CHRONIC LOW BACK PAIN (CLBP) IN WHITE ADULTS WITH HIGH SOCIOECONOMIC STATUS. THE COMPARATIVE EFFECTIVENESS OF TWICE-WEEKLY CLASSES AND GENERALIZABILITY TO RACIALLY DIVERSE LOW INCOME POPULATIONS ARE UNKNOWN. METHODS. WE CONDUCTED A 12-WEEK RANDOMIZED, PARALLEL-GROUP, DOSING TRIAL FOR 95 ADULTS RECRUITED FROM AN URBAN SAFETY-NET HOSPITAL AND FIVE COMMUNITY HEALTH CENTERS COMPARING ONCE-WEEKLY (N = 49) VERSUS TWICE-WEEKLY (N = 46) STANDARDIZED YOGA CLASSES SUPPLEMENTED BY HOME PRACTICE. PRIMARY OUTCOMES WERE CHANGE FROM BASELINE TO 12 WEEKS IN PAIN (11-POINT SCALE) AND BACK-RELATED FUNCTION (23-POINT MODIFIED ROLAND-MORRIS DISABILITY QUESTIONNAIRE). RESULTS. 82% OF PARTICIPANTS WERE NONWHITE; 77% HAD ANNUAL HOUSEHOLD INCOMES <$40,000. THE SAMPLE'S BASELINE MEAN PAIN INTENSITY [6.9 (SD 1.6)] AND FUNCTION [13.7 (SD 5.0)] REFLECTED MODERATE TO SEVERE BACK PAIN AND IMPAIRMENT. PAIN AND BACK-RELATED FUNCTION IMPROVED WITHIN BOTH GROUPS (P < 0.001). HOWEVER, THERE WERE NO DIFFERENCES BETWEEN ONCE-WEEKLY AND TWICE-WEEKLY GROUPS FOR PAIN REDUCTION [-2.1 (95% CI -2.9, -1.3) VERSUS -2.4 (95% CI -3.1, -1.8), P = 0.62] OR BACK-RELATED FUNCTION [-5.1 (95% CI -7.0, -3.2) VERSUS -4.9 (95% CI -6.5, -3.3), P = 0.83]. CONCLUSIONS. TWELVE WEEKS OF ONCE-WEEKLY OR TWICE-WEEKLY YOGA CLASSES WERE SIMILARLY EFFECTIVE FOR PREDOMINANTLY LOW INCOME MINORITY ADULTS WITH MODERATE TO SEVERE CHRONIC LOW BACK PAIN. THIS TRIAL IS REGISTERED WITH CLINICALTRIALS.GOV NCT01761617. 2013 2 1699 66 PARTICIPANT CHARACTERISTICS ASSOCIATED WITH SYMPTOMATIC IMPROVEMENT FROM YOGA FOR CHRONIC LOW BACK PAIN. CONTEXT: STUDIES SUGGEST THAT YOGA IS EFFECTIVE FOR MODERATE TO SEVERE CHRONIC LOW BACK PAIN (CLBP) IN DIVERSE PREDOMINANTLY LOWER SOCIOECONOMIC STATUS POPULATIONS. HOWEVER, LITTLE IS KNOWN ABOUT FACTORS ASSOCIATED WITH BENEFIT FROM THE YOGA INTERVENTION. OBJECTIVE: IDENTIFY FACTORS AT BASELINE INDEPENDENTLY ASSOCIATED WITH GREATER EFFICACY AMONG PARTICIPANTS IN A STUDY OF YOGA FOR CLBP. DESIGN: FROM SEPTEMBER-DECEMBER 2011, A 12-WEEK RANDOMIZED DOSING TRIAL WAS CONDUCTED COMPARING WEEKLY VS. TWICE-WEEKLY 75-MINUTE HATHA YOGA CLASSES FOR 95 PREDOMINANTLY LOW-INCOME MINORITY ADULTS WITH NONSPECIFIC CLBP. PARTICIPANT CHARACTERISTICS COLLECTED AT BASELINE WERE USED TO DETERMINE FACTORS BEYOND TREATMENT ASSIGNMENT (REPORTED IN THE INITIAL STUDY) THAT PREDICTED OUTCOME. WE USED BIVARIATE TESTING TO IDENTIFY BASELINE CHARACTERISTICS ASSOCIATED WITH IMPROVEMENT IN FUNCTION AND PAIN, AND INCLUDED SELECT FACTORS IN A MULTIVARIATE LINEAR REGRESSION. SETTING: RECRUITMENT AND CLASSES OCCURRED IN AN ACADEMIC SAFETY-NET HOSPITAL AND FIVE AFFILIATED COMMUNITY HEALTH CENTERS IN BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS. PARTICIPANTS: NINETY-FIVE ADULTS WITH NONSPECIFIC CLBP, AGES RANGING FROM 20-64 (MEAN 48) YEARS; 72 WOMEN AND 23 MEN. OUTCOME MEASURES: PRIMARY OUTCOMES WERE CHANGES IN BACK-RELATED FUNCTION (MODIFIED ROLAND-MORRIS DISABILITY QUESTIONNAIRE, RMDQ; 0-23) AND MEAN LOW BACK PAIN INTENSITY (0-10) IN THE PREVIOUS WEEK, FROM BASELINE TO WEEK 12. RESULTS: ADJUSTING FOR GROUP ASSIGNMENT, BASELINE RMDQ, AGE, AND GENDER, FOREIGN NATIONALITY AND LOWER BASELINE SF36 PHYSICAL COMPONENT SCORE (PCS) WERE INDEPENDENTLY ASSOCIATED WITH IMPROVEMENT IN RMDQ. GREATER THAN HIGH SCHOOL EDUCATION LEVEL, CLBP LESS THAN 1 YEAR, AND LOWER BASELINE SF36 PCS WERE INDEPENDENTLY ASSOCIATED WITH IMPROVEMENT IN PAIN INTENSITY. OTHER DEMOGRAPHICS INCLUDING RACE, INCOME, GENDER, BMI, AND USE OF PAIN MEDICATIONS WERE NOT ASSOCIATED WITH EITHER OUTCOME. CONCLUSIONS: POOR PHYSICAL HEALTH AT BASELINE IS ASSOCIATED WITH GREATER IMPROVEMENT FROM YOGA IN BACK-RELATED FUNCTION AND PAIN. RACE, INCOME, AND BODY MASS INDEX DO NOT AFFECT THE POTENTIAL FOR A PERSON WITH LOW BACK PAIN TO EXPERIENCE BENEFIT FROM YOGA. 2014 3 465 42 CHARACTERISTICS AND PREDICTORS OF SHORT-TERM OUTCOMES IN INDIVIDUALS SELF-SELECTING YOGA OR PHYSICAL THERAPY FOR TREATMENT OF CHRONIC LOW BACK PAIN. OBJECTIVE: TO COMPARE CLINICAL AND DEMOGRAPHIC CHARACTERISTICS OF INDIVIDUALS SELF-SELECTING YOGA OR PHYSICAL THERAPY (PT) FOR TREATMENT OF CHRONIC LOW BACK PAIN (CLBP) AND TO EXAMINE PREDICTORS OF SHORT-TERM PAIN AND FUNCTIONAL OUTCOMES. DESIGN: DESCRIPTIVE, LONGITUDINAL STUDY. SETTINGS: A HOSPITAL-BASED CLINIC THAT OFFERS MODIFIED INTEGRAL YOGA CLASSES FOR CLBP AND 2 OUTPATIENT PT CLINICS THAT OFFER EXERCISE-BASED PT. PARTICIPANTS: ADULTS (N=53) WITH CLBP>/=12 WEEKS: YOGA (N=27), PT (N=26). METHODS: YOGA PARTICIPANTS ATTENDED A 6-WEEK, ONCE WEEKLY, 2-HOUR YOGA CLASS. PT PARTICIPANTS UNDERWENT TWICE WEEKLY, 1-HOUR INDIVIDUALIZED PT. DATA WERE COLLECTED AT BASELINE AND AT 6 WEEKS. GROUPS WERE COMPARED BY USING CHI2 AND INDEPENDENT SAMPLES T-TESTS. HIERARCHICAL LINEAR REGRESSION WAS USED TO PREDICT TREATMENT OUTCOMES. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: DISABILITY (ROLAND MORRIS DISABILITY QUESTIONNAIRE), HEALTH STATUS (RAND SHORT FORM 36 HEALTH SURVEY 1.0), PAIN BOTHERSOMENESS (NUMERICAL RATING SCALE), BACK PAIN SELF-EFFICACY (BACK PAIN SELF-EFFICACY SCALE), AND TREATMENT SATISFACTION. RESULTS: AT BASELINE, YOGA PARTICIPANTS WERE SIGNIFICANTLY LESS DISABLED (P=.013), HAD HIGHER HEALTH STATUS (P=.023), GREATER PAIN SELF-EFFICACY (P=.012), AND LESS AVERAGE PAIN BOTHERSOMENESS (P=.001) COMPARED WITH PT PARTICIPANTS. AT 6 WEEKS, WHEN CONTROLLING FOR BASELINE GROUP DIFFERENCES, GREATER PAIN SELF-EFFICACY WAS THE STRONGEST PREDICTOR FOR REDUCED PAIN AND HIGHER FUNCTION FOR THE ENTIRE SAMPLE. A SIGNIFICANT GROUP INTERACTION BY BASELINE PAIN SELF-EFFICACY PREDICTED DISABILITY AT 6 WEEKS. PT PARTICIPANTS WITH LOW PAIN SELF-EFFICACY REPORTED SIGNIFICANTLY GREATER DISABILITY THAN THOSE WITH HIGH PAIN SELF-EFFICACY. YOGA PARTICIPANTS WITH LOW AND HIGH PAIN SELF-EFFICACY HAD SIMILAR DISABILITY OUTCOMES. CONCLUSION: THESE FINDINGS STRENGTHEN EVIDENCE THAT SELF-EFFICACY IS ASSOCIATED WITH CLBP OUTCOMES, ESPECIALLY IN INDIVIDUALS SELF-SELECTING PT. FURTHER RESEARCH TO EVALUATE OUTCOMES AFTER YOGA AND PT IN PARTICIPANTS WITH LOW PAIN SELF-EFFICACY IS NEEDED. 2010 4 1787 52 PREFERENCE AND EXPECTATION FOR TREATMENT ASSIGNMENT IN A RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED TRIAL OF ONCE- VS TWICE-WEEKLY YOGA FOR CHRONIC LOW BACK PAIN. BACKGROUND: IN STUDIES INVOLVING NONPHARMACOLOGICAL COMPLEMENTARY AND ALTERNATIVE MEDICINE INTERVENTIONS, PARTICIPANT BLINDING IS VERY DIFFICULT. PARTICIPANT EXPECTATIONS MAY AFFECT PERCEIVED BENEFIT OF THERAPY. IN STUDIES OF YOGA AS TREATMENT FOR CHRONIC LOW BACK PAIN, LITTLE IS KNOWN ABOUT THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN PATIENT EXPECTATIONS AND PREFERENCES ON OUTCOMES. THIS STUDY WAS DESIGNED TO IDENTIFY BASELINE PREDICTORS OF PREFERENCE AND TO DETERMINE IF EXPECTATIONS AND PREFERENCES FOR DIFFERENT DOSES OF YOGA AFFECT BACK-RELATED FUNCTION AND LOW BACK PAIN INTENSITY. METHODS: THIS WAS A SECONDARY DATA ANALYSIS OF A 12-WEEK RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED TRIAL COMPARING ONCE-WEEKLY VS TWICE-WEEKLY YOGA FOR TREATMENT OF CHRONIC LOW BACK PAIN IN 93 ADULTS FROM A PREDOMINANTLY LOW-INCOME MINORITY POPULATION. AT BASELINE, PARTICIPANTS WERE ASKED ABOUT BACK FUNCTION, BACK PAIN, TREATMENT EXPECTATIONS, AND TREATMENT PREFERENCES. WE CREATED A VARIABLE "CONCORDANCE" TO DESCRIBE THE MATCHING OF PARTICIPANT PREFERENCE TO RANDOMIZED TREATMENT. OUR OUTCOME VARIABLES WERE CHANGE IN BACK FUNCTION AND PAIN INTENSITY AFTER 12 WEEKS OF YOGA INSTRUCTION. WE PERFORMED LOGISTIC REGRESSION TO IDENTIFY PREDICTORS OF PREFERENCE FOR ONCE- OR TWICE-WEEKLY YOGA INSTRUCTION. WE CREATED LINEAR REGRESSION MODELS TO IDENTIFY INDEPENDENT ASSOCIATIONS BETWEEN EXPECTATIONS, PREFERENCE, CONCORDANCE, AND OUTCOMES. RESULTS: WORSE BACK FUNCTION AT BASELINE WAS ASSOCIATED WITH 20% HIGHER ODDS OF PREFERRING TWICE-WEEKLY YOGA (OR 1.2, CI 1.1, 1.3). INDIVIDUALS WITH HIGHER EXPECTATION SCORES FOR TWICE-WEEKLY YOGA HAD 90% HIGHER ODDS OF PREFERRING TWICE-WEEKLY VS ONCE-WEEKLY YOGA (OR 1.9, CI 1.3, 2.7). INDIVIDUALS WITH HIGHER EXPECTATION SCORES FOR ONCE-WEEKLY YOGA HAD 40% LESS ODDS OF PREFERRING TWICE-WEEKLY YOGA (OR 0.6, CI 0.5, 0.9). AFTER CONTROLLING FOR BASELINE CHARACTERISTICS, WE FOUND NO STATISTICALLY SIGNIFICANT RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN TREATMENT OUTCOMES, PREFERENCE, EXPECTATION SCORES, OR CONCORDANCE. CONCLUSION: IN A POPULATION OF PREDOMINANTLY LOW-INCOME MINORITY PARTICIPANTS WITH CHRONIC LOW BACK PAIN, WORSE BACK FUNCTION WAS ASSOCIATED WITH PREFERENCE FOR MORE FREQUENT YOGA CLASSES. THOSE WHO PREFERRED MORE YOGA CLASSES HAD HIGHER EXPECTATIONS FOR THOSE CLASSES. TWELVE-WEEK CHANGE IN BACK PAIN INTENSITY AND BACK FUNCTION WERE NOT AFFECTED BY DOSING PREFERENCE, EXPECTATION SCORE, OR CONCORDANCE. MORE RESEARCH IS NEEDED TO BETTER MEASURE AND QUANTIFY PREFERENCE, EXPECTATIONS, AND THEIR RELATIONSHIP TO OUTCOMES IN YOGA RESEARCH. 2015 5 388 36 BENEFITS OF THE RESTORATIVE EXERCISE AND STRENGTH TRAINING FOR OPERATIONAL RESILIENCE AND EXCELLENCE YOGA PROGRAM FOR CHRONIC LOW BACK PAIN IN SERVICE MEMBERS: A PILOT RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED TRIAL. OBJECTIVE: TO EXAMINE THE FEASIBILITY AND PRELIMINARY EFFECTIVENESS OF AN INDIVIDUALIZED YOGA PROGRAM. DESIGN: PILOT RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED TRIAL. SETTING: MILITARY MEDICAL CENTER. PARTICIPANTS: PATIENTS (N=68) WITH CHRONIC LOW BACK PAIN. INTERVENTIONS: RESTORATIVE EXERCISE AND STRENGTH TRAINING FOR OPERATIONAL RESILIENCE AND EXCELLENCE (RESTORE) PROGRAM (9-12 INDIVIDUAL YOGA SESSIONS) OR TREATMENT AS USUAL (CONTROL) FOR AN 8-WEEK PERIOD. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: THE PRIMARY OUTCOME WAS PAST 24-HOUR PAIN (DEFENSE & VETERANS PAIN RATING SCALE 2.0). SECONDARY OUTCOMES INCLUDED DISABILITY (ROLAND-MORRIS DISABILITY QUESTIONNAIRE) AND PHYSICAL FUNCTIONING AND SYMPTOM BURDEN (PATIENT-REPORTED OUTCOMES MEASUREMENT INFORMATION SYSTEM-29 SUBSCALES). ASSESSMENT OCCURRED AT BASELINE, WEEK 4, WEEK 8, 3-MONTH FOLLOW-UP, AND 6-MONTH FOLLOW-UP. EXPLORATORY OUTCOMES INCLUDED THE PROPORTION OF PARTICIPANTS IN EACH GROUP REPORTING CLINICALLY MEANINGFUL CHANGES AT 3- AND 6-MONTH FOLLOW-UPS. RESULTS: GENERALIZED LINEAR MIXED MODELS WITH SEQUENTIAL BONFERRONI-ADJUSTED PAIRWISE SIGNIFICANCE TESTS AND CHI-SQUARE ANALYSES EXAMINED LONGITUDINAL OUTCOMES. SECONDARY OUTCOME SIGNIFICANCE TESTS WERE BONFERRONI ADJUSTED FOR MULTIPLE OUTCOMES. THE RESTORE GROUP REPORTED IMPROVED PAIN COMPARED WITH THE CONTROL GROUP. SECONDARY OUTCOMES DID NOT RETAIN SIGNIFICANCE AFTER BONFERRONI ADJUSTMENTS FOR MULTIPLE OUTCOMES, ALTHOUGH A HIGHER PROPORTION OF RESTORE PARTICIPANTS REPORTED CLINICALLY MEANINGFULLY CHANGES IN ALL OUTCOMES AT 3-MONTH FOLLOW-UP AND IN SYMPTOM BURDEN AT 6-MONTH FOLLOW-UP. CONCLUSIONS: RESTORE MAY BE A VIABLE NONPHARMACOLOGICAL TREATMENT FOR LOW BACK PAIN WITH MINIMAL SIDE EFFECTS, AND RESEARCH EFFORTS ARE NEEDED TO COMPARE THE EFFECTIVENESS OF RESTORE DELIVERY FORMATS (EG, GROUP VS INDIVIDUAL) WITH THAT OF OTHER TREATMENT MODALITIES. 2018 6 2323 40 TREATMENT OF CHRONIC PRIMARY SLEEP ONSET INSOMNIA WITH KUNDALINI YOGA: A RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED TRIAL WITH ACTIVE SLEEP HYGIENE COMPARISON. STUDY OBJECTIVES: PRIOR STUDIES HAVE SUGGESTED A BENEFIT OF YOGA FOR ALLEVIATING SLEEP DISTURBANCE; HOWEVER, MANY STUDIES HAVE HAD METHODOLOGICAL LIMITATIONS. THIS TRIAL STUDY AIMED TO EXTEND THAT LITERATURE BY INCLUDING AN ACTIVE SLEEP HYGIENE COMPARISON. METHODS: PARTICIPANTS AGED 25-59 YEARS WITH A PRIMARY COMPLAINT OF SLEEP ONSET INSOMNIA LASTING AT LEAST 6 MONTHS WERE BLOCK RANDOMIZED TO AN 8-WEEK KUNDALINI YOGA OR SLEEP HYGIENE INTERVENTION, BOTH CONSISTING OF INITIAL 60-MINUTE INSTRUCTION AND WEEKLY CHECK-INS. DAILY SLEEP DIARIES AND QUESTIONNAIRES WERE COLLECTED AT BASELINE, THROUGHOUT THE INTERVENTION, AND AT 6-MONTH FOLLOW-UP. DATA WERE ANALYZED USING LINEAR MIXED MODELS (N = 20 IN EACH GROUP). RESULTS: PARTICIPANT RATINGS OF THE INTERVENTIONS DID NOT SIGNIFICANTLY DIFFER. SLEEP HYGIENE IMPROVED SEVERAL DIARY AND QUESTIONNAIRE OUTCOMES, HOWEVER, YOGA RESULTED IN EVEN GREATER IMPROVEMENTS CORRESPONDING TO MEDIUM-TO-LARGE BETWEEN-GROUP EFFECT SIZES. TOTAL SLEEP TIME INCREASED PROGRESSIVELY ACROSS YOGA TREATMENT (D = 0.95, P = .002), CONCURRENT WITH INCREASED SLEEP EFFICIENCY (D = 1.36, P < .001) AND DECREASED SLEEP ONSET LATENCY (D = -1.16, P < .001), BUT WITHOUT CHANGES IN PRE-SLEEP AROUSAL (D =-0.30, P = .59). REMISSION RATES WERE ALSO HIGHER FOR YOGA COMPARED TO SLEEP HYGIENE, WITH >/= 80% OF YOGA PARTICIPANTS REPORTING AVERAGE SLEEP ONSET LATENCY < 30 MINUTES AND SLEEP EFFICIENCY > 80% AT 6-MONTH FOLLOW-UP. FOR OVER 50% OF YOGA PARTICIPANTS, THE INSOMNIA SEVERITY INDEX DECREASED BY AT LEAST 8 POINTS AT END OF TREATMENT AND FOLLOW-UP. CONCLUSIONS: YOGA, TAUGHT IN A SELF-CARE FRAMEWORK WITH MINIMAL INSTRUCTOR BURDEN, WAS ASSOCIATED WITH SELF-REPORTED IMPROVEMENTS ABOVE AND BEYOND AN ACTIVE SLEEP HYGIENE COMPARISON, SUSTAINED AT 6-MONTH FOLLOW-UP. FOLLOW-UP STUDIES ARE NEEDED TO ASSESS ACTIGRAPHY AND POLYSOMNOGRAPHY OUTCOMES, AS WELL AS POSSIBLE MECHANISMS OF CHANGE. CLINICAL TRIAL REGISTRATION: REGISTRY: CLINICALTRIALS.GOV; NAME: YOGA AS A TREATMENT FOR INSOMNIA; URL: HTTPS://CLINICALTRIALS.GOV/CT2/SHOW/NCT00033865; IDENTIFIER: NCT00033865. CITATION: KHALSA SBS, GOLDSTEIN MR. TREATMENT OF CHRONIC PRIMARY SLEEP ONSET INSOMNIA WITH KUNDALINI YOGA: A RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED TRIAL WITH ACTIVE SLEEP HYGIENE COMPARISON. J CLIN SLEEP MED. 2021;17(9):1841-1852. 2021 7 2851 52 YOGA, PHYSICAL THERAPY, AND BACK PAIN EDUCATION FOR SLEEP QUALITY IN LOW-INCOME RACIALLY DIVERSE ADULTS WITH CHRONIC LOW BACK PAIN: A SECONDARY ANALYSIS OF A RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED TRIAL. BACKGROUND: POOR SLEEP IS COMMON AMONG ADULTS WITH CHRONIC LOW BACK PAIN (CLBP), BUT THE INFLUENCE OF CLBP TREATMENTS, SUCH AS YOGA AND PHYSICAL THERAPY (PT), ON SLEEP QUALITY IS UNDER STUDIED. OBJECTIVE: EVALUATE THE EFFECTIVENESS OF YOGA AND PT FOR IMPROVING SLEEP QUALITY IN ADULTS WITH CLBP. DESIGN: SECONDARY ANALYSIS OF A RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED TRIAL. SETTING: ACADEMIC SAFETY-NET HOSPITAL AND 7 AFFILIATED COMMUNITY HEALTH CENTERS. PARTICIPANTS: A TOTAL OF 320 ADULTS WITH CLBP. INTERVENTION: TWELVE WEEKLY YOGA CLASSES, 1-ON-1 PT SESSIONS, OR AN EDUCATIONAL BOOK. MAIN MEASURES: SLEEP QUALITY WAS MEASURED USING THE PITTSBURGH SLEEP QUALITY INDEX (PSQI) GLOBAL SCORE (0-21) AT BASELINE, 12 WEEKS, AND 52 WEEKS. ADDITIONALLY, WE ALSO EVALUATED HOW THE PROPORTION OF PARTICIPANTS WHO ACHIEVED A CLINICALLY MEANINGFUL IMPROVEMENT IN SLEEP QUALITY (> 3-POINT REDUCTION IN PSQI) AT 12 WEEKS VARIED BY CHANGES IN PAIN AND PHYSICAL FUNCTION AT 6 WEEKS. KEY RESULTS: AMONG PARTICIPANTS (MEAN AGE = 46.0, 64% FEMALE, 82% NON-WHITE), NEARLY ALL (92%) REPORTED POOR SLEEP QUALITY (PSQI > 5) AT BASELINE. AT 12 WEEKS, MODEST IMPROVEMENTS IN SLEEP QUALITY WERE OBSERVED AMONG THE YOGA (PSQI MEAN DIFFERENCE [MD] = - 1.19, 95% CONFIDENCE INTERVAL [CI] - 1.82, - 0.55) AND PT (PSQI MD = - 0.91, 95% CI - 1.61, - 0.20) GROUPS. PARTICIPANTS WHO REPORTED A >/= 30% IMPROVEMENT IN PAIN OR PHYSICAL FUNCTION AT 6 WEEKS, COMPARED WITH THOSE WHO IMPROVED < 10%, WERE MORE LIKELY TO BE A SLEEP QUALITY RESPONDER AT 12 WEEKS (ODDS RATIO [OR] = 3.51, 95% CI 1.73, 7.11 AND OR = 2.16, 95% CI 1.18, 3.95, RESPECTIVELY). RESULTS WERE SIMILAR AT 52 WEEKS. CONCLUSION: IN A SAMPLE OF ADULTS WITH CLBP, VIRTUALLY ALL WITH POOR SLEEP QUALITY PRIOR TO INTERVENTION, MODEST BUT STATISTICALLY SIGNIFICANT IMPROVEMENTS IN SLEEP QUALITY WERE OBSERVED WITH BOTH YOGA AND PT. IRRESPECTIVE OF TREATMENT, CLINICALLY IMPORTANT SLEEP IMPROVEMENTS AT THE END OF THE INTERVENTION WERE ASSOCIATED WITH MID-INTERVENTION PAIN AND PHYSICAL FUNCTION IMPROVEMENTS. TRIAL REGISTRATION: CLINICALTRIALS.GOV IDENTIFIER: NCT01343927. 2020 8 2604 41 YOGA FOR PERSISTENT FATIGUE IN BREAST CANCER SURVIVORS: A RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED TRIAL. BACKGROUND: CANCER-RELATED FATIGUE AFFLICTS UP TO 33% OF BREAST CANCER SURVIVORS, YET THERE ARE NO EMPIRICALLY VALIDATED TREATMENTS FOR THIS SYMPTOM. METHODS: THE AUTHORS CONDUCTED A 2-GROUP RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED TRIAL TO DETERMINE THE FEASIBILITY AND EFFICACY OF AN IYENGAR YOGA INTERVENTION FOR BREAST CANCER SURVIVORS WITH PERSISTENT POST-TREATMENT FATIGUE. PARTICIPANTS WERE BREAST CANCER SURVIVORS WHO HAD COMPLETED CANCER TREATMENTS (OTHER THAN ENDOCRINE THERAPY) AT LEAST 6 MONTHS BEFORE ENROLLMENT, REPORTED SIGNIFICANT CANCER-RELATED FATIGUE, AND HAD NO OTHER MEDICAL CONDITIONS THAT WOULD ACCOUNT FOR FATIGUE SYMPTOMS OR INTERFERE WITH YOGA PRACTICE. BLOCK RANDOMIZATION WAS USED TO ASSIGN PARTICIPANTS TO A 12-WEEK, IYENGAR-BASED YOGA INTERVENTION OR TO 12 WEEKS OF HEALTH EDUCATION (CONTROL). THE PRIMARY OUTCOME WAS CHANGE IN FATIGUE MEASURED AT BASELINE, IMMEDIATELY POST-TREATMENT, AND 3 MONTHS AFTER TREATMENT COMPLETION. ADDITIONAL OUTCOMES INCLUDED CHANGES IN VIGOR, DEPRESSIVE SYMPTOMS, SLEEP, PERCEIVED STRESS, AND PHYSICAL PERFORMANCE. INTENT-TO-TREAT ANALYSES WERE CONDUCTED WITH ALL RANDOMIZED PARTICIPANTS USING LINEAR MIXED MODELS. RESULTS: THIRTY-ONE WOMEN WERE RANDOMLY ASSIGNED TO YOGA (N = 16) OR HEALTH EDUCATION (N = 15). FATIGUE SEVERITY DECLINED SIGNIFICANTLY FROM BASELINE TO POST-TREATMENT AND OVER A 3-MONTH FOLLOW-UP IN THE YOGA GROUP RELATIVE TO CONTROLS (P = .032). IN ADDITION, THE YOGA GROUP HAD SIGNIFICANT INCREASES IN VIGOR RELATIVE TO CONTROLS (P = .011). BOTH GROUPS HAD POSITIVE CHANGES IN DEPRESSIVE SYMPTOMS AND PERCEIVED STRESS (P < .05). NO SIGNIFICANT CHANGES IN SLEEP OR PHYSICAL PERFORMANCE WERE OBSERVED. CONCLUSIONS: A TARGETED YOGA INTERVENTION LED TO SIGNIFICANT IMPROVEMENTS IN FATIGUE AND VIGOR AMONG BREAST CANCER SURVIVORS WITH PERSISTENT FATIGUE SYMPTOMS. 2012 9 461 52 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 10 2852 65 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 11 521 58 COMPARING YOGA, EXERCISE, AND A SELF-CARE BOOK FOR CHRONIC LOW BACK PAIN: A RANDOMIZED, CONTROLLED TRIAL. BACKGROUND: CHRONIC LOW BACK PAIN IS A COMMON PROBLEM THAT HAS ONLY MODESTLY EFFECTIVE TREATMENT OPTIONS. OBJECTIVE: TO DETERMINE WHETHER YOGA IS MORE EFFECTIVE THAN CONVENTIONAL THERAPEUTIC EXERCISE OR A SELF-CARE BOOK FOR PATIENTS WITH CHRONIC LOW BACK PAIN. DESIGN: RANDOMIZED, CONTROLLED TRIAL. SETTING: A NONPROFIT, INTEGRATED HEALTH CARE SYSTEM. PATIENTS: 101 ADULTS WITH CHRONIC LOW BACK PAIN. INTERVENTION: 12-WEEK SESSIONS OF YOGA OR CONVENTIONAL THERAPEUTIC EXERCISE CLASSES OR A SELF-CARE BOOK. MEASUREMENTS: PRIMARY OUTCOMES WERE BACK-RELATED FUNCTIONAL STATUS (MODIFIED 24-POINT ROLAND DISABILITY SCALE) AND "BOTHERSOMENESS" OF PAIN (11-POINT NUMERICAL SCALE). THE PRIMARY TIME POINT WAS 12 WEEKS. CLINICALLY SIGNIFICANT CHANGE WAS CONSIDERED TO BE 2.5 POINTS ON THE FUNCTIONAL STATUS SCALE AND 1.5 POINTS ON THE BOTHERSOMENESS SCALE. SECONDARY OUTCOMES WERE DAYS OF RESTRICTED ACTIVITY, GENERAL HEALTH STATUS, AND MEDICATION USE. RESULTS: AFTER ADJUSTMENT FOR BASELINE VALUES, BACK-RELATED FUNCTION IN THE YOGA GROUP WAS SUPERIOR TO THE BOOK AND EXERCISE GROUPS AT 12 WEEKS (YOGA VS. BOOK: MEAN DIFFERENCE, -3.4 [95% CI, -5.1 TO - 1.6] [P < 0.001]; YOGA VS. EXERCISE: MEAN DIFFERENCE, -1.8 [CI, -3.5 TO - 0.1] [P = 0.034]). NO SIGNIFICANT DIFFERENCES IN SYMPTOM BOTHERSOMENESS WERE FOUND BETWEEN ANY 2 GROUPS AT 12 WEEKS; AT 26 WEEKS, THE YOGA GROUP WAS SUPERIOR TO THE BOOK GROUP WITH RESPECT TO THIS MEASURE (MEAN DIFFERENCE, -2.2 [CI, -3.2 TO - 1.2]; P < 0.001). AT 26 WEEKS, BACK-RELATED FUNCTION IN THE YOGA GROUP WAS SUPERIOR TO THE BOOK GROUP (MEAN DIFFERENCE, -3.6 [CI, -5.4 TO - 1.8]; P < 0.001). LIMITATIONS: PARTICIPANTS IN THIS STUDY WERE FOLLOWED FOR ONLY 26 WEEKS AFTER RANDOMIZATION. ONLY 1 INSTRUCTOR DELIVERED EACH INTERVENTION. CONCLUSIONS: YOGA WAS MORE EFFECTIVE THAN A SELF-CARE BOOK FOR IMPROVING FUNCTION AND REDUCING CHRONIC LOW BACK PAIN, AND THE BENEFITS PERSISTED FOR AT LEAST SEVERAL MONTHS. 2005 12 1862 39 RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED TRIAL OF YOGA AMONG A MULTIETHNIC SAMPLE OF BREAST CANCER PATIENTS: EFFECTS ON QUALITY OF LIFE. PURPOSE: THIS STUDY EXAMINES THE IMPACT OF YOGA, INCLUDING PHYSICAL POSES, BREATHING, AND MEDITATION EXERCISES, ON QUALITY OF LIFE (QOL), FATIGUE, DISTRESSED MOOD, AND SPIRITUAL WELL-BEING AMONG A MULTIETHNIC SAMPLE OF BREAST CANCER PATIENTS. PATIENTS AND METHODS: ONE HUNDRED TWENTY-EIGHT PATIENTS (42% AFRICAN AMERICAN, 31% HISPANIC) RECRUITED FROM AN URBAN CANCER CENTER WERE RANDOMLY ASSIGNED (2:1 RATIO) TO A 12-WEEK YOGA INTERVENTION (N = 84) OR A 12-WEEK WAITLIST CONTROL GROUP (N = 44). CHANGES IN QOL (EG, FUNCTIONAL ASSESSMENT OF CANCER THERAPY) FROM BEFORE RANDOM ASSIGNMENT (T1) TO THE 3-MONTH FOLLOW-UP (T3) WERE EXAMINED; PREDICTORS OF ADHERENCE WERE ALSO ASSESSED. NEARLY HALF OF ALL PATIENTS WERE RECEIVING MEDICAL TREATMENT. RESULTS: REGRESSION ANALYSES INDICATED THAT THE CONTROL GROUP HAD A GREATER DECREASE IN SOCIAL WELL-BEING COMPARED WITH THE INTERVENTION GROUP AFTER CONTROLLING FOR BASELINE SOCIAL WELL-BEING AND COVARIATES (P < .0001). SECONDARY ANALYSES OF 71 PATIENTS NOT RECEIVING CHEMOTHERAPY DURING THE INTERVENTION PERIOD INDICATED FAVORABLE OUTCOMES FOR THE INTERVENTION GROUP COMPARED WITH THE CONTROL GROUP IN OVERALL QOL (P < .008), EMOTIONAL WELL-BEING (P < .015), SOCIAL WELL-BEING (P < .004), SPIRITUAL WELL-BEING (P < .009), AND DISTRESSED MOOD (P < .031). SIXTY-NINE PERCENT OF INTERVENTION PARTICIPANTS ATTENDED CLASSES (MEAN NUMBER OF CLASSES ATTENDED BY ACTIVE CLASS PARTICIPANTS = 7.00 +/- 3.80), WITH LOWER ADHERENCE ASSOCIATED WITH INCREASED FATIGUE (P < .001), RADIOTHERAPY (P < .0001), YOUNGER AGE (P < .008), AND NO ANTIESTROGEN THERAPY (P < .02). CONCLUSION: DESPITE LIMITED ADHERENCE, THIS INTENT-TO-TREAT ANALYSIS SUGGESTS THAT YOGA IS ASSOCIATED WITH BENEFICIAL EFFECTS ON SOCIAL FUNCTIONING AMONG A MEDICALLY DIVERSE SAMPLE OF BREAST CANCER SURVIVORS. AMONG PATIENTS NOT RECEIVING CHEMOTHERAPY, YOGA APPEARS TO ENHANCE EMOTIONAL WELL-BEING AND MOOD AND MAY SERVE TO BUFFER DETERIORATION IN BOTH OVERALL AND SPECIFIC DOMAINS OF QOL. 2007 13 2558 60 YOGA FOR CHRONIC LOW BACK PAIN IN A PREDOMINANTLY MINORITY POPULATION: A PILOT RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED TRIAL. BACKGROUND: SEVERAL STUDIES SUGGEST YOGA MAY BE EFFECTIVE FOR CHRONIC LOW BACK PAIN; HOWEVER, TRIALS TARGETING MINORITIES HAVE NOT BEEN CONDUCTED. PRIMARY STUDY OBJECTIVES: ASSESS THE FEASIBILITY OF STUDYING YOGA IN A PREDOMINANTLY MINORITY POPULATION WITH CHRONIC LOW BACK PAIN. COLLECT PRELIMINARY DATA TO PLAN A LARGER POWERED STUDY. STUDY DESIGN: PILOT RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED TRIAL. SETTING: TWO COMMUNITY HEALTH CENTERS IN A RACIALLY DIVERSE NEIGHBORHOOD OF BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS. PARTICIPANTS: THIRTY ENGLISH-SPEAKING ADULTS (MEAN AGE 44 YEARS, 83% FEMALE, 83% RACIAL/ETHNIC MINORITIES; 48% WITH INCOMES < OR = $30,000) WITH MODERATE-TO-SEVERE CHRONIC LOW BACK PAIN. INTERVENTIONS: STANDARDIZED SERIES OF WEEKLY HATHA YOGA CLASSES FOR 12 WEEKS COMPARED TO A WAITLIST USUAL CARE CONTROL. OUTCOME MEASURES: FEASIBILITY MEASURED BY TIME TO COMPLETE ENROLLMENT, PROPORTION OF RACIAL/ETHNIC MINORITIES ENROLLED, RETENTION RATES, AND ADVERSE EVENTS. PRIMARY EFFICACY OUTCOMES WERE CHANGES FROM BASELINE TO 12 WEEKS IN PAIN SCORE (0=NO PAIN TO 10=WORST POSSIBLE PAIN) AND BACK-RELATED FUNCTION USING THE MODIFIED ROLAND-MORRIS DISABILITY QUESTIONNAIRE (0-23 POINT SCALE, HIGHER SCORES REFLECT POORER FUNCTION). SECONDARY EFFICACY OUTCOMES WERE ANALGESIC USE, GLOBAL IMPROVEMENT, AND QUALITY OF LIFE (SF-36). RESULTS: RECRUITMENT TOOK 2 MONTHS. RETENTION RATES WERE 97% AT 12 WEEKS AND 77% AT 26 WEEKS. MEAN PAIN SCORES FOR YOGA DECREASED FROM BASELINE TO 12 WEEKS (6.7 TO 4.4) COMPARED TO USUAL CARE, WHICH DECREASED FROM 7.5 TO 7.1 (P=.02). MEAN ROLAND SCORES FOR YOGA DECREASED FROM 14.5 TO 8.2 COMPARED TO USUAL CARE, WHICH DECREASED FROM 16.1 TO 12.5 (P=.28). AT 12 WEEKS, YOGA COMPARED TO USUAL CARE PARTICIPANTS REPORTED LESS ANALGESIC USE (13% VS 73%, P=.003), LESS OPIATE USE (0% VS 33%, P=.04), AND GREATER OVERALL IMPROVEMENT (73% VS 27%, P=.03). THERE WERE NO DIFFERENCES IN SF-36 SCORES AND NO SERIOUS ADVERSE EVENTS. CONCLUSION: A YOGA STUDY INTERVENTION IN A PREDOMINANTLY MINORITY POPULATION WITH CHRONIC LOW BACK PAIN WAS MODERATELY FEASIBLE AND MAY BE MORE EFFECTIVE THAN USUAL CARE FOR REDUCING PAIN AND PAIN MEDICATION USE. 2009 14 2560 50 YOGA FOR CHRONIC LOW BACK PAIN: A RANDOMIZED TRIAL. BACKGROUND: PREVIOUS STUDIES INDICATE THAT YOGA MAY BE AN EFFECTIVE TREATMENT FOR CHRONIC OR RECURRENT LOW BACK PAIN. OBJECTIVE: TO COMPARE THE EFFECTIVENESS OF YOGA AND USUAL CARE FOR CHRONIC OR RECURRENT LOW BACK PAIN. DESIGN: PARALLEL-GROUP, RANDOMIZED, CONTROLLED TRIAL USING COMPUTER-GENERATED RANDOMIZATION CONDUCTED FROM APRIL 2007 TO MARCH 2010. OUTCOMES WERE ASSESSED BY POSTAL QUESTIONNAIRE. (INTERNATIONAL STANDARD RANDOMISED CONTROLLED TRIAL NUMBER REGISTER: ISRCTN 81079604) SETTING: 13 NON-NATIONAL HEALTH SERVICE PREMISES IN THE UNITED KINGDOM. PATIENTS: 313 ADULTS WITH CHRONIC OR RECURRENT LOW BACK PAIN. INTERVENTION: YOGA (N = 156) OR USUAL CARE (N = 157). ALL PARTICIPANTS RECEIVED A BACK PAIN EDUCATION BOOKLET. THE INTERVENTION GROUP WAS OFFERED A 12-CLASS, GRADUALLY PROGRESSING YOGA PROGRAM DELIVERED BY 12 TEACHERS OVER 3 MONTHS. MEASUREMENTS: SCORES ON THE ROLAND-MORRIS DISABILITY QUESTIONNAIRE (RMDQ) AT 3 (PRIMARY OUTCOME), 6, AND 12 (SECONDARY OUTCOMES) MONTHS; PAIN, PAIN SELF-EFFICACY, AND GENERAL HEALTH MEASURES AT 3, 6, AND 12 MONTHS (SECONDARY OUTCOMES). RESULTS: 93 (60%) PATIENTS OFFERED YOGA ATTENDED AT LEAST 3 OF THE FIRST 6 SESSIONS AND AT LEAST 3 OTHER SESSIONS. THE YOGA GROUP HAD BETTER BACK FUNCTION AT 3, 6, AND 12 MONTHS THAN THE USUAL CARE GROUP. THE ADJUSTED MEAN RMDQ SCORE WAS 2.17 POINTS (95% CI, 1.03 TO 3.31 POINTS) LOWER IN THE YOGA GROUP AT 3 MONTHS, 1.48 POINTS (CI, 0.33 TO 2.62 POINTS) LOWER AT 6 MONTHS, AND 1.57 POINTS (CI, 0.42 TO 2.71 POINTS) LOWER AT 12 MONTHS. THE YOGA AND USUAL CARE GROUPS HAD SIMILAR BACK PAIN AND GENERAL HEALTH SCORES AT 3, 6, AND 12 MONTHS, AND THE YOGA GROUP HAD HIGHER PAIN SELF-EFFICACY SCORES AT 3 AND 6 MONTHS BUT NOT AT 12 MONTHS. TWO OF THE 157 USUAL CARE PARTICIPANTS AND 12 OF THE 156 YOGA PARTICIPANTS REPORTED ADVERSE EVENTS, MOSTLY INCREASED PAIN. LIMITATION: THERE WERE MISSING DATA FOR THE PRIMARY OUTCOME (YOGA GROUP, N = 21; USUAL CARE GROUP, N = 18) AND DIFFERENTIAL MISSING DATA (MORE IN THE YOGA GROUP) FOR SECONDARY OUTCOMES. CONCLUSION: OFFERING A 12-WEEK YOGA PROGRAM TO ADULTS WITH CHRONIC OR RECURRENT LOW BACK PAIN LED TO GREATER IMPROVEMENTS IN BACK FUNCTION THAN DID USUAL CARE. PRIMARY FUNDING SOURCE: ARTHRITIS RESEARCH UK. 2011 15 2552 36 YOGA FOR CHEMOTHERAPY-INDUCED PERIPHERAL NEUROPATHY AND FALL RISK: A RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED TRIAL. BACKGROUND: CHEMOTHERAPY-INDUCED PERIPHERAL NEUROPATHY (CIPN) IS A COMMON, DEBILITATING SIDE EFFECT THAT WORSENS QUALITY OF LIFE AND INCREASES THE RISK OF FALLS IN CANCER SURVIVORS. EVIDENCE OF YOGA'S SAFETY AND EFFICACY IN TREATING CIPN IS LACKING. METHODS: IN A RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED STUDY, WE ASSIGNED BREAST AND GYNECOLOGICAL CANCER SURVIVORS WITH PERSISTENT MODERATE-TO-SEVERE CIPN PAIN, NUMBNESS, OR TINGLING WITH A SCORE OF 4 OR GREATER (0-10 NUMERIC RATING SCALE [NRS]) FOR AT LEAST 3 MONTHS AFTER CHEMOTHERAPY TO 8 WEEKS OF USUAL CARE OR YOGA FOCUSED ON BREATHWORK AND MUSCULOSKELETAL CONDITIONING. PRIMARY ENDPOINT WAS TREATMENT ARM DIFFERENCES FOR NRS, AND SECONDARY ENDPOINTS WERE FUNCTIONAL ASSESSMENT OF CANCER THERAPY/GYNECOLOGIC ONCOLOGY GROUP-NEUROTOXICITY SUBSCALE (FACT/GOG-NTX), AND FUNCTIONAL REACH TEST AFTER WEEK 8. WE TESTED TREATMENT ARM DIFFERENCES FOR EACH OUTCOME MEASURE USING LINEAR MIXED MODELS WITH TREATMENT-BY-TIME INTERACTIONS. ALL STATISTICAL TESTS WERE TWO-SIDED. RESULTS: WE RANDOMLY ASSIGNED 41 PARTICIPANTS INTO YOGA (N = 21) OR USUAL CARE (N = 20). AT WEEK 8, MEAN NRS PAIN DECREASED BY 1.95 POINTS (95% CONFIDENCE INTERVAL [CI] = -3.20 TO -0.70) IN YOGA VS 0.65 (95% CI = -1.81 TO 0.51) IN USUAL CARE (P = .14). FACT/GOG-NTX IMPROVED BY 4.25 (95% CI = 2.29 TO 6.20) IN YOGA VS 1.36 (95% CI = -0.47 TO 3.19) IN USUAL CARE (P = .035). FUNCTIONAL REACH, AN OBJECTIVE FUNCTIONAL MEASURE PREDICTING THE RISK OF FALLS, IMPROVED BY 7.14 CM (95% CI = 3.68 TO 10.59) IN YOGA AND DECREASED BY 1.65 CM (95% CI = -5.00 TO 1.72) IN USUAL CARE (P = .001). FOUR GRADE 1 ADVERSE EVENTS WERE OBSERVED IN THE YOGA ARM. CONCLUSION: AMONG BREAST AND GYNECOLOGICAL CANCER SURVIVORS WITH MODERATE-TO-SEVERE CIPN, YOGA WAS SAFE AND SHOWED PROMISING EFFICACY IN IMPROVING CIPN SYMPTOMS. 2020 16 74 43 A GROUP-BASED YOGA THERAPY INTERVENTION FOR URINARY INCONTINENCE IN WOMEN: A PILOT RANDOMIZED TRIAL. OBJECTIVE: THE AIM OF THIS STUDY IS TO EXAMINE THE FEASIBILITY, EFFICACY, AND SAFETY OF A GROUP-BASED YOGA THERAPY INTERVENTION FOR MIDDLE-AGED AND OLDER WOMEN WITH URINARY INCONTINENCE. METHODS: WE CONDUCTED A PILOT RANDOMIZED TRIAL OF AMBULATORY WOMEN AGED 40 YEARS AND OLDER WITH STRESS, URGENCY, OR MIXED-TYPE INCONTINENCE. WOMEN WERE RANDOMIZED TO A 6-WEEK YOGA THERAPY PROGRAM (N = 10) CONSISTING OF TWICE WEEKLY GROUP CLASSES AND ONCE WEEKLY HOME PRACTICE OR A WAIT-LIST CONTROL GROUP (N = 9). ALL PARTICIPANTS ALSO RECEIVED WRITTEN PAMPHLETS ABOUT STANDARD BEHAVIORAL SELF-MANAGEMENT STRATEGIES FOR INCONTINENCE. CHANGES IN INCONTINENCE WERE ASSESSED WITH 7-DAY VOIDING DIARIES. RESULTS: THE MEAN (SD) AGE WAS 61.4 (8.2) YEARS, AND THE MEAN BASELINE FREQUENCY OF INCONTINENCE WAS 2.5 (1.3) EPISODES/D. AFTER 6 WEEKS, THE TOTAL INCONTINENCE FREQUENCY DECREASED BY 70% (1.8 [0.9] FEWER EPISODES/D) IN THE YOGA THERAPY VERSUS 13% (0.3 [1.7] FEWER EPISODES/D) IN THE CONTROL GROUP (P = 0.049). PARTICIPANTS IN THE YOGA THERAPY GROUP ALSO REPORTED AN AVERAGE OF 71% DECREASE IN STRESS INCONTINENCE FREQUENCY (0.7 [0.8] FEWER EPISODES/D) COMPARED WITH A 25% INCREASE IN CONTROLS (0.2 [1.1] MORE EPISODES/D) (P = 0.039). NO SIGNIFICANT DIFFERENCES IN REDUCTION IN URGENCY INCONTINENCE WERE DETECTED BETWEEN THE YOGA THERAPY VERSUS CONTROL GROUPS (1.0 [1.0] VERSUS 0.5 [0.5] FEWER EPISODES/D; P = 0.20). ALL WOMEN STARTING THE YOGA THERAPY PROGRAM COMPLETED AT LEAST 90% OF THE GROUP CLASSES AND PRACTICE SESSIONS. TWO PARTICIPANTS IN EACH GROUP REPORTED ADVERSE EVENTS UNRELATED TO THE INTERVENTION. CONCLUSIONS: FINDINGS PROVIDE PRELIMINARY EVIDENCE TO SUPPORT THE FEASIBILITY, EFFICACY, AND SAFETY OF A GROUP-BASED YOGA THERAPY INTERVENTION TO IMPROVE URINARY INCONTINENCE IN WOMEN. 2014 17 2596 56 YOGA FOR MILITARY VETERANS WITH CHRONIC LOW BACK PAIN: A RANDOMIZED CLINICAL TRIAL. INTRODUCTION: CHRONIC LOW BACK PAIN (CLBP) IS PREVALENT, ESPECIALLY AMONG MILITARY VETERANS. MANY CLBP TREATMENT OPTIONS HAVE LIMITED BENEFITS AND ARE ACCOMPANIED BY SIDE EFFECTS. MAJOR EFFORTS TO REDUCE OPIOID USE AND EMBRACE NONPHARMACOLOGICAL PAIN TREATMENTS HAVE RESULTED. RESEARCH WITH COMMUNITY CLBP PATIENTS INDICATES THAT YOGA CAN IMPROVE HEALTH OUTCOMES AND HAS FEW SIDE EFFECTS. THE BENEFITS OF YOGA AMONG MILITARY VETERANS WERE EXAMINED. DESIGN: PARTICIPANTS WERE RANDOMIZED TO EITHER YOGA OR DELAYED YOGA TREATMENT IN 2013-2015. OUTCOMES WERE ASSESSED AT BASELINE, 6 WEEKS, 12 WEEKS, AND 6 MONTHS. INTENTION-TO-TREAT ANALYSES OCCURRED IN 2016. SETTING/PARTICIPANTS: ONE HUNDRED AND FIFTY MILITARY VETERANS WITH CLBP WERE RECRUITED FROM A MAJOR VETERANS AFFAIRS MEDICAL CENTER IN CALIFORNIA. INTERVENTION: YOGA CLASSES (WITH HOME PRACTICE) WERE LED BY A CERTIFIED INSTRUCTOR TWICE WEEKLY FOR 12 WEEKS, AND CONSISTED PRIMARILY OF PHYSICAL POSTURES, MOVEMENT, AND BREATHING TECHNIQUES. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: THE PRIMARY OUTCOME WAS ROLAND-MORRIS DISABILITY QUESTIONNAIRE SCORES AFTER 12 WEEKS. PAIN INTENSITY WAS IDENTIFIED AS AN IMPORTANT SECONDARY OUTCOME. RESULTS: PARTICIPANT CHARACTERISTICS WERE MEAN AGE 53 YEARS, 26% WERE FEMALE, 35% WERE UNEMPLOYED OR DISABLED, AND MEAN BACK PAIN DURATION WAS 15 YEARS. IMPROVEMENTS IN ROLAND-MORRIS DISABILITY QUESTIONNAIRE SCORES DID NOT DIFFER BETWEEN THE TWO GROUPS AT 12 WEEKS, BUT YOGA PARTICIPANTS HAD GREATER REDUCTIONS IN ROLAND-MORRIS DISABILITY QUESTIONNAIRE SCORES THAN DELAYED TREATMENT PARTICIPANTS AT 6 MONTHS -2.48 (95% CI= -4.08, -0.87). YOGA PARTICIPANTS IMPROVED MORE ON PAIN INTENSITY AT 12 WEEKS AND AT 6 MONTHS. OPIOID MEDICATION USE DECLINED AMONG ALL PARTICIPANTS, BUT GROUP DIFFERENCES WERE NOT FOUND. CONCLUSIONS: YOGA IMPROVED HEALTH OUTCOMES AMONG VETERANS DESPITE EVIDENCE THEY HAD FEWER RESOURCES, WORSE HEALTH, AND MORE CHALLENGES ATTENDING YOGA SESSIONS THAN COMMUNITY SAMPLES STUDIED PREVIOUSLY. THE MAGNITUDE OF PAIN INTENSITY DECLINE WAS SMALL, BUT OCCURRED IN THE CONTEXT OF REDUCED OPIOID USE. THE FINDINGS SUPPORT WIDER IMPLEMENTATION OF YOGA PROGRAMS FOR VETERANS. TRIAL REGISTRATION: THIS STUDY IS REGISTERED AT WWW.CLINICALTRIALS.GOV NCT02524158. 2017 18 193 56 A RANDOMIZED TRIAL COMPARING YOGA, STRETCHING, AND A SELF-CARE BOOK FOR CHRONIC LOW BACK PAIN. BACKGROUND: CHRONIC LOW BACK PAIN IS A COMMON PROBLEM LACKING HIGHLY EFFECTIVE TREATMENT OPTIONS. SMALL TRIALS SUGGEST THAT YOGA MAY HAVE BENEFITS FOR THIS CONDITION. THIS TRIAL WAS DESIGNED TO DETERMINE WHETHER YOGA IS MORE EFFECTIVE THAN CONVENTIONAL STRETCHING EXERCISES OR A SELF-CARE BOOK FOR PRIMARY CARE PATIENTS WITH CHRONIC LOW BACK PAIN. METHODS: A TOTAL OF 228 ADULTS WITH CHRONIC LOW BACK PAIN WERE RANDOMIZED TO 12 WEEKLY CLASSES OF YOGA (92 PATIENTS) OR CONVENTIONAL STRETCHING EXERCISES (91 PATIENTS) OR A SELF-CARE BOOK (45 PATIENTS). BACK-RELATED FUNCTIONAL STATUS (MODIFIED ROLAND DISABILITY QUESTIONNAIRE, A 23-POINT SCALE) AND BOTHERSOMENESS OF PAIN (AN 11-POINT NUMERICAL SCALE) AT 12 WEEKS WERE THE PRIMARY OUTCOMES. OUTCOMES WERE ASSESSED AT BASELINE, 6, 12, AND 26 WEEKS BY INTERVIEWERS UNAWARE OF TREATMENT GROUP. RESULTS: AFTER ADJUSTMENT FOR BASELINE VALUES, 12-WEEK OUTCOMES FOR THE YOGA GROUP WERE SUPERIOR TO THOSE FOR THE SELF-CARE GROUP (MEAN DIFFERENCE FOR FUNCTION, -2.5 [95% CI, -3.7 TO -1.3]; P < .001; MEAN DIFFERENCE FOR SYMPTOMS, -1.1 [95% CI, -1.7 TO -0.4]; P < .001). AT 26 WEEKS, FUNCTION FOR THE YOGA GROUP REMAINED SUPERIOR (MEAN DIFFERENCE, -1.8 [95% CI, -3.1 TO -0.5]; P < .001). YOGA WAS NOT SUPERIOR TO CONVENTIONAL STRETCHING EXERCISES AT ANY TIME POINT. CONCLUSION: YOGA CLASSES WERE MORE EFFECTIVE THAN A SELF-CARE BOOK, BUT NOT MORE EFFECTIVE THAN STRETCHING CLASSES, IN IMPROVING FUNCTION AND REDUCING SYMPTOMS DUE TO CHRONIC LOW BACK PAIN, WITH BENEFITS LASTING AT LEAST SEVERAL MONTHS. TRIAL REGISTRATION: CLINICALTRIALS.GOV IDENTIFIER: NCT00447668. 2011 19 107 37 A PILOT RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED TRIAL OF THE EFFECTS OF CHAIR YOGA ON PAIN AND PHYSICAL FUNCTION AMONG COMMUNITY-DWELLING OLDER ADULTS WITH LOWER EXTREMITY OSTEOARTHRITIS. OBJECTIVES: TO DETERMINE EFFECTS OF SIT 'N' FIT CHAIR YOGA, COMPARED TO A HEALTH EDUCATION PROGRAM (HEP), ON PAIN AND PHYSICAL FUNCTION IN OLDER ADULTS WITH LOWER EXTREMITY OSTEOARTHRITIS (OA) WHO COULD NOT PARTICIPATE IN STANDING EXERCISE. DESIGN: TWO-ARM RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED TRIAL. SETTING: ONE HUD SENIOR HOUSING FACILITY AND ONE DAY SENIOR CENTER IN SOUTH FLORIDA. PARTICIPANTS: COMMUNITY-DWELLING OLDER ADULTS (N = 131) WERE RANDOMLY ASSIGNED TO CHAIR YOGA (N = 66) OR HEP (N = 65). THIRTEEN DROPPED AFTER ASSIGNMENT BUT PRIOR TO THE INTERVENTION; SIX DROPPED DURING THE INTERVENTION; 106 OF 112 COMPLETED AT LEAST 12 OF 16 SESSIONS (95% RETENTION RATE). INTERVENTIONS: PARTICIPANTS ATTENDED EITHER CHAIR YOGA OR HEP. BOTH INTERVENTIONS CONSISTED OF TWICE-WEEKLY 45-MINUTE SESSIONS FOR 8 WEEKS. MEASUREMENTS: PRIMARY: PAIN, PAIN INTERFERENCE; SECONDARY: BALANCE, GAIT SPEED, FATIGUE, FUNCTIONAL ABILITY MEASURED AT BASELINE, AFTER 4 WEEKS OF INTERVENTION, AT THE END OF THE 8-WEEK INTERVENTION, AND POST-INTERVENTION (1 AND 3 MONTHS). RESULTS: THE CHAIR YOGA GROUP SHOWED GREATER REDUCTION IN PAIN INTERFERENCE DURING THE INTERVENTION (P = .01), SUSTAINED THROUGH 3 MONTHS (P = .022). WOMAC PAIN (P = .048), GAIT SPEED (P = .024), AND FATIGUE (P = .037) WERE IMPROVED IN THE YOGA GROUP DURING THE INTERVENTION (P = .048) BUT IMPROVEMENTS WERE NOT SUSTAINED POST INTERVENTION. CHAIR YOGA HAD NO EFFECT ON BALANCE. CONCLUSION: AN 8-WEEK CHAIR YOGA PROGRAM WAS ASSOCIATED WITH REDUCTION IN PAIN, PAIN INTERFERENCE, AND FATIGUE, AND IMPROVEMENT IN GAIT SPEED, BUT ONLY THE EFFECTS ON PAIN INTERFERENCE WERE SUSTAINED 3 MONTHS POST INTERVENTION. CHAIR YOGA SHOULD BE FURTHER EXPLORED AS A NONPHARMACOLOGIC INTERVENTION FOR OLDER PEOPLE WITH OA IN THE LOWER EXTREMITIES. TRIAL REGISTRATION: CLINICALTRIALS.GOV: NCT02113410. 2017 20 2549 45 YOGA FOR CANCER SURVIVORS WITH CHEMOTHERAPY-INDUCED PERIPHERAL NEUROPATHY: HEALTH-RELATED QUALITY OF LIFE OUTCOMES. BACKGROUND: YOGA IS A MEDITATIVE MOVEMENT THERAPY FOCUSED ON MIND-BODY AWARENESS. THE IMPACT OF YOGA ON HEALTH-RELATED QUALITY OF LIFE (HRQOL) OUTCOMES IN PATIENTS WITH CHEMOTHERAPY-INDUCED PERIPHERAL NEUROPATHY (CIPN) IS UNCLEAR. METHODS: WE CONDUCTED A PILOT RANDOMIZED WAIT-LIST CONTROLLED TRIAL OF 8 WEEKS OF YOGA (N = 21) VERSUS WAIT-LIST CONTROL (N = 20) FOR CIPN IN 41 BREAST AND GYNECOLOGICAL CANCER SURVIVORS WITH PERSISTENT MODERATE TO SEVERE CIPN. HRQOL ENDPOINTS WERE HOSPITAL ANXIETY AND DEPRESSION SCALE (HADS), BRIEF FATIGUE INVENTORY (BFI), AND INSOMNIA SEVERITY INDEX (ISI). THE TREATMENT EXPECTANCY SCALE (TES) WAS ADMINISTERED AT BASELINE. WE ESTIMATED MEAN CHANGES AND 95% CONFIDENCE INTERVALS (CIS) FROM BASELINE TO WEEKS 8 AND 12 AND COMPARED ARMS USING CONSTRAINED LINEAR MIXED MODELS. RESULTS: AT WEEK 8, HADS ANXIETY SCORES DECREASED -1.61 (-2.75, -0.46) IN THE YOGA ARM AND -0.32 (-1.38, 0.75) POINTS IN THE WAIT-LIST CONTROL ARM (P = 0.099). AT WEEK 12, HADS ANXIETY SCORES DECREASED -1.42 (-2.57, -0.28) IN YOGA COMPARED TO AN INCREASE OF 0.46 (-0.60, 1.53) IN WAIT-LIST CONTROL (P = 0.017). THERE WERE NO SIGNIFICANT DIFFERENCES IN HADS DEPRESSION, BFI, OR ISI SCORES BETWEEN YOGA AND WAIT-LIST CONTROL. BASELINE TES WAS SIGNIFICANTLY HIGHER IN YOGA THAN IN WAIT-LIST CONTROL (14.9 VS. 12.7, P = 0.019). TES WAS NOT ASSOCIATED WITH HADS ANXIETY REDUCTION AND HADS ANXIETY REDUCTION WAS NOT ASSOCIATED WITH CIPN PAIN REDUCTION. CONCLUSIONS: YOGA MAY REDUCE ANXIETY IN PATIENTS WITH CIPN. FUTURE STUDIES ARE NEEDED TO CONFIRM THESE FINDINGS. CLINICAL TRIAL REGISTRATION NUMBER: CLINICALTRIALS.GOV IDENTIFIER: NCT03292328. 2021