1 1990 129 SPINAL CURVATURES OF YOGA PRACTITIONERS COMPARED TO CONTROL PARTICIPANTS-A CROSS-SECTIONAL STUDY. PURPOSE: THE ANGLES OF THORACIC KYPHOSIS AND LUMBAR LORDOSIS DETERMINE THE SPINAL ALIGNMENT IN THE SAGITTAL PLANE. THE AIM OF THIS STUDY WAS TO COMPARE THE THORACIC KYPHOSIS AND LUMBAR LORDOSIS OF MALE AND FEMALE YOGA PRACTITIONERS WITH NON-PRACTICING PARTICIPANTS AND TO DETERMINE THE POSSIBLE DEPENDENCIES BETWEEN SAGITTAL SPINAL CURVATURES AND SOMATIC PARAMETERS, TIME SPENT ON YOGA EXERCISE, AND UNDERTAKING OTHER PHYSICAL ACTIVITIES IN YOGA PRACTITIONERS. METHODS: THE STUDY INVOLVED 576 WOMEN AND 91 MEN AGES 18-68 YEARS (MEAN = 38.5 +/- 9) WHO WERE PRACTICING YOGA, AND 402 WOMEN AND 176 MEN AGES 18-30 YEARS (MEAN = 20.2 +/- 1.3) AS A CONTROL GROUP. THE ANGLES OF THORACIC KYPHOSIS AND LUMBAR LORDOSIS WERE MEASURED USING A PLURIMETER-V GRAVITY INCLINOMETER. RESULTS: THE TWO-WAY ANOVA DEMONSTRATED THE INFLUENCE OF GROUP (P < .0001) AND SEX (P = .03) ON THE ANGLE OF THORACIC KYPHOSIS, AS WELL AS THE INFLUENCE OF GROUP (P < .0001) AND SEX (P < .0001) ON THE ANGLE OF LUMBAR LORDOSIS. IT WAS NOTED THAT YOGA PRACTITIONERS HAD LESS PRONOUNCED THORACIC KYPHOSIS AND LUMBAR LORDOSIS AND WERE MORE OFTEN CHARACTERIZED BY NORMAL OR SMALLER THORACIC KYPHOSIS AND LUMBAR LORDOSIS THAN STUDENTS FROM THE CONTROL GROUP. IN YOGA PRACTITIONERS, THE ANGLE OF THORACIC KYPHOSIS WAS POSITIVELY CORRELATED WITH AGE, BODY MASS, BMI, AND UNDERTAKING OTHER FORMS OF PHYSICAL ACTIVITY. THE ANGLE OF LUMBAR LORDOSIS WAS NEGATIVELY CORRELATED WITH BODY HEIGHT AND BODY MASS. CONCLUSIONS: THE RESULTS SUGGEST THAT YOGA EXERCISES CAN AFFECT THE SHAPE OF THE ANTERIOR-POSTERIOR CURVES OF THE SPINE AND MAY BE AN EFFICIENT TRAINING METHOD FOR SHAPING PROPER POSTURE IN ADULTS.	2021	
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                  
2 2209  28 THE GEOMETRIC CURVATURE OF THE SPINE DURING THE SIRSHASANA, THE YOGA'S HEADSTAND. THIS STUDY ANALYSED THE BEHAVIOUR OF THE GEOMETRIC CURVATURE OF THE SPINE DURING SIRSHASANA. THE POSITION OF DORSAL RETROREFLECTIVE MARKERS WAS COMPUTED VIA STEREOPHOTOGRAMMETRIC ANALYSIS IN SIX MALES AND FIVE FEMALES (29.4 +/- 8.8 YEARS, 63.0 +/- 11.4 KG, 1.66 +/- 0.08 M [AVERAGE +/- STANDARD DEVIATION]). THE SPINAL POINTS WERE PROJECTED ONTO THE SAGITTAL AND FRONTAL PLANES OF THE TRUNK, A POLYNOMIAL WAS FITTED TO THE DATA AND THE TWO-DIMENSIONAL GEOMETRIC CURVATURE WAS QUANTIFIED. THE INFERIOR LUMBAR LORDOSIS DECREASED COMPARED TO THE ORTHOSTATIC POSITION AND GAIT, WHICH MAY FAVOUR THE POSTERIOR PROTRUSION OF THE LUMBAR SPINAL NUCLEUS PULPOSUS IN PEOPLE WITH POSTERIOR HERNIATION. THE LATERAL DEVIATION AT THE MIDDLE OF THE THORACIC SPINE INCREASES DURING SIRSHASANA, WHICH MAY REFLECT INCREASED DIFFICULTIES FOR POSTURAL CONTROL AND SPINAL LOADS. IT COULD BE USEFUL FOR PROMOTING POSITIVE SPINAL STRUCTURAL AND FUNCTIONAL CHRONIC ADAPTATIONS FOR HEALTHY PARTICIPANTS, IF THE YOGA PROGRAMME IS CAREFULLY PLANNED AND THE SPINAL ALIGNMENT IS CAREFULLY MONITORED DURING A HEADSTAND. HOWEVER, IT MAY AGGRAVATE SOME SPINAL DISEASES, ESPECIALLY SCOLIOSIS.	2017	
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                       
3 2328  23 TRUNK AND HIP MUSCLE ACTIVATION DURING YOGA POSES: DO SEX-DIFFERENCES EXIST? OBJECTIVE: TO COMPARE CORE ACTIVATION DURING YOGA BETWEEN MALES AND FEMALES. METHODS: SURFACE ELECTROMYOGRAPHY WAS USED TO QUANTIFY RECTUS ABDOMINIS (RA), ABDOMINAL OBLIQUES (AO), LUMBAR EXTENSORS (LE), AND GLUTEUS MAXIMUS (GMX) ACTIVATION DURING FOUR YOGA POSES. DATA WERE EXPRESSED AS 100% OF A MAXIMUM VOLUNTARY ISOMETRIC CONTRACTION. MIXED-MODEL 2X2 ANALYSES OF VARIANCE WITH REPEATED MEASURES WERE USED TO DETERMINE BETWEEN-SEX DIFFERENCES IN MUSCLE ACTIVITY. RESULTS: FEMALES GENERATED GREATER RA ACTIVITY THAN MALES DURING THE HIGH PLANK (P<0.0001) AND DOMINANT-SIDE WARRIOR 1 (P=0.017). THEY GENERATED GREATER AO (P<0.0001) AND GMX (P=0.004) ACTIVITY DURING THE HIGH PLANK (P<0.0001). NO BETWEEN-SEX EMG ACTIVITY DIFFERENCES EXISTED FOR THE CHAIR AND UPWARD FACING DOG. CONCLUSION: FINDINGS HAVE PROVIDED PRELIMINARY EVIDENCE FOR BETWEEN-SEX DIFFERENCES IN MUSCLE ACTIVATION DURING YOGA POSES. CLINICIANS SHOULD CONSIDER SUCH DIFFERENCES WHEN PRESCRIBING YOGA TO IMPROVE MUSCLE STRENGTH AND ENDURANCE.	2018	
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                  
4 2779  20 YOGA TECHNIQUES AS A MEANS OF CORE STABILITY TRAINING. CORE STABILITY IN GENERAL INVOLVES THE MUSCULAR CONTROL REQUIRED AROUND THE LUMBAR SPINE TO MAINTAIN FUNCTIONAL STABILITY. STABILITY AND MOVEMENT ARE CRITICALLY DEPENDENT ON THE COORDINATION OF ALL THE MUSCLES SURROUNDING THE LUMBAR SPINE. THIS PAPER AIMS TO SHOW THAT AN AGE-OLD YOGA PRACTICE, CALLED UDDHYANA BHANDA AND NOULI, IS AN EFFECTIVE MEANS OF CORE STABILITY.	2009	
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                        
5 2400  31 YOGA AND DISC DEGENERATIVE DISEASE IN CERVICAL AND LUMBAR SPINE: AN MR IMAGING-BASED CASE CONTROL STUDY. THE OBJECTIVE OF THE CURRENT STUDY WAS TO FIND OUT WHETHER YOGA PRACTICE WAS BENEFICIAL TO THE SPINE BY COMPARING DEGENERATIVE DISC DISEASE IN THE SPINES OF LONG-TIME YOGA PRACTITIONERS AND NON-YOGA PRACTICING CONTROLS, USING AN OBJECTIVE MEASUREMENT TOOL, MAGNETIC RESONANCE IMAGING. THIS MATCHED CASE-CONTROL STUDY COMPRISED 18 YOGA INSTRUCTORS WITH TEACHING EXPERIENCE OF MORE THAN 10 YEARS AND 18 NON-YOGA PRACTICING ASYMPTOMATIC INDIVIDUALS RANDOMLY SELECTED FROM A HEALTH CHECKUP DATABASE. A VALIDATED GRADING SCALE WAS USED TO GRADE THE CONDITION OF CERVICAL AND LUMBAR DISCS SEEN IN MAGNETIC RESONANCE IMAGING OF THE SPINE, AND THE RESULTING DATA ANALYZED STATISTICALLY. THE MEAN NUMBER OF YEARS OF YOGA PRACTICE FOR THE YOGA GROUP WAS 12.9 +/- 7.5. THE OVERALL (CERVICAL + LUMBAR) DISC SCORES OF THE YOGA GROUP WERE SIGNIFICANTLY LOWER (INDICATING LESS DEGENERATIVE DISC DISEASE) THAN THOSE OF THE CONTROL GROUP (P < 0.001). THE SCORES FOR THE CERVICAL VERTEBRAL DISCS OF THE YOGA GROUP WERE ALSO SIGNIFICANTLY LOWER THAN THOSE OF THE CONTROL GROUP (P < 0.001), WHILE THE LOWER SCORES FOR THE YOGA GROUP IN THE LUMBAR GROUP APPROACHED, BUT DID NOT REACH, STATISTICAL SIGNIFICANCE (P = 0.055). THE SCORES FOR INDIVIDUAL DISCS OF YOGA PRACTITIONERS SHOWED SIGNIFICANTLY LESS DEGENERATIVE DISEASE AT THREE DISC LEVELS, C3/C4, L2/L3 AND L3/L4 (P < 0.05). MAGNETIC RESONANCE IMAGING SHOWED THAT THE GROUP OF LONG-TERM PRACTITIONERS OF YOGA STUDIED HAD SIGNIFICANTLY LESS DEGENERATIVE DISC DISEASE THAN A MATCHED CONTROL GROUP.	2011	
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                             
6 2329  29 TRUNK AND HIP MUSCLE ACTIVATION DURING YOGA POSES: IMPLICATIONS FOR PHYSICAL THERAPY PRACTICE. OBJECTIVE: TO DETERMINE AND COMPARE ACTIVATION OF CORE MUSCLES DURING YOGA TO TRADITIONAL BACK EXERCISES. METHODS: SURFACE ELECTROMYOGRAPHY WAS USED TO QUANTIFY ACTIVATION OF THE RECTUS ABDOMINIS (RA), ABDOMINAL OBLIQUES (AO), LUMBAR EXTENSORS (LE), AND GLUTEUS MAXIMUS (GMX) DURING FOUR YOGA POSES. DATA WERE EXPRESSED AS 100% OF A MAXIMUM VOLUNTARY ISOMETRIC CONTRACTION. SEPARATE ANALYSES OF VARIANCE WITH REPEATED MEASURES WERE USED TO COMPARE MUSCLE ACTIVITY ACROSS EACH EXERCISE. RESULTS: SUBJECTS GENERATED GREATER RA (P < 0.0001) AND AO (P < 0.0001) ACTIVITY DURING THE PLANK. THEY GENERATED GREATER AO ACTIVITY (P < 0.0001) DURING THE UPWARD-FACING DOG THAN THE CHAIR AND DOMINANT-SIDE WARRIOR 1. LE ACTIVITY WAS GREATEST (P < 0.0001) DURING THE CHAIR. GMX ACTIVITY WAS SIMILAR (P = 0.09) DURING ALL EXERCISES. CONCLUSION: YOGA POSES MAY HELP IMPROVE CORE ENDURANCE AND STRENGTH. CLINICIANS MAY USE THESE DATA WHEN DEVELOPING AND IMPLEMENTING AN EVIDENCE-BASED CORE EXERCISE PROGRAM FOR INDIVIDUALS WHO PREFER A YOGA TREATMENT STRATEGY.	2017	
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                            
7 1283  31 GLUTEAL MUSCLE ACTIVATION DURING COMMON YOGA POSES. BACKGROUND: APPROXIMATELY 24% OF PHYSICAL THERAPISTS REPORT REGULARLY USING YOGA TO STRENGTHEN MAJOR MUSCLE GROUPS. ALTHOUGH CLINICIANS AND ATHLETES OFTEN USE YOGA AS A FORM OF STRENGTH TRAINING, LITTLE IS KNOWN ABOUT THE ACTIVATION OF SPECIFIC MUSCLE GROUPS DURING YOGA POSES, INCLUDING THE GLUTEUS MAXIMUS AND MEDIUS. HYPOTHESIS/PURPOSE: THE PURPOSE OF THIS STUDY WAS TO MEASURE GLUTEUS MAXIMIMUS AND GLUTEUS MEDIUS ACTIVATION VIA ELECTROMYOGRAPHY (EMG) DURING FIVE COMMON YOGA POSES. A SECONDARY PURPOSE OF THE CURRENT STUDY WAS TO EXAMINE DIFFERENCES IN MUSCLE ACTIVATION BETWEEN SEXES AND EXPERIENCE LEVELS. STUDY DESIGN: CROSS-SECTIONAL. METHODS: THIRTY-ONE HEALTHY MALES AND FEMALES AGED 18-35 YEARS WERE TESTED DURING FIVE YOGA POSES PERFORMED IN A RANDOMIZED ORDER. SURFACE EMG ELECTRODES WERE PLACED ON SUBJECTS' RIGHT GLUTEUS MAXIMUS AND GLUTEUS MEDIUS. SUBJECTS PERFORMED THE POSES ON BOTH SIDES FOLLOWING A MAXIMAL VOLUNTARY ISOMETRIC CONTRACTION (MVIC) TEST FOR EACH MUSCLE. ALL YOGA POSE EMG DATA WERE NORMALIZED TO THE CORRESPONDING MUSCLE MVIC DATA. RESULTS: HIGHEST GLUTEUS MAXIMUS ACTIVATION OCCURRED DURING HALF MOON POSE ON THE LIFTED/BACK LEG (63.3% MVIC), FOLLOWED BY THE STANCE/FRONT LEG DURING HALF MOON POSE (61.7%), THEN THE LIFTED/BACK LEG DURING WARRIOR THREE POSE (46.1%). HIGHEST GLUTEUS MEDIUS ACTIVATION OCCURRED DURING HALF MOON POSE ON THE LIFTED/BACK LEG (41.9%), FOLLOWED BY THE LIFTED/BACK LEG DURING THE WARRIOR THREE POSE (41.6%). A SIGNIFICANT DIFFERENCE WAS FOUND IN %MVIC OF GLUTEUS MEDIUS ACTIVITY BETWEEN MALE AND FEMALE SUBJECTS (P = 0.026), AND BETWEEN EXPERIENCED AND INEXPERIENCED SUBJECTS (P = 0.050), INDICATING HIGHER ACTIVATION AMONG MALES AND INEXPERIENCED SUBJECTS, RESPECTIVELY. CONCLUSION: HALF MOON POSE AND WARRIOR THREE POSE ELICITED THE HIGHEST ACTIVATION FOR BOTH THE GLUTEUS MAXIMUS AND THE GLUTEUS MEDIUS. HIGHER GLUTEUS MEDIUS ACTIVATION WAS SEEN IN MALES AND INEXPERIENCED SUBJECTS COMPARED TO THEIR FEMALE AND EXPERIENCED COUNTERPARTS. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: 3.	2021	
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                    
8  649  35 DYNAMIC EVALUATION OF THE CONTRACTILE FUNCTION OF LUMBODORSAL MUSCLES DURING LOCUST POSE IN YOGA BY REAL-TIME ULTRASOUND. BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: CHRONIC LOW BACK PAIN (CLBP), WHICH HAS A CLOSE RELATIONSHIP WITH LUMBAR MUSCLE DEGENERATION, CAN BE EFFECTIVELY TREATED BY EXERCISE THERAPY, AND YOGA HAS BEEN WIDELY ACCEPTED BY CLINICIANS AND PATIENTS WITH CLBP. THE PURPOSE OF THIS STUDY WAS TO OBSERVE THE CHANGES IN THE THICKNESS OF LUMBODORSAL MUSCLES THAT OCCUR DURING LOCUST POSE IN YOGA AND HOW THESE CHANGES OCCUR. FROM THE CHANGES IN MUSCLE THICKNESS THAT OCCUR IN THE LOCUST POSE, THE CONTRACTILE FUNCTION OF LUMBODORSAL MUSCLES CAN BE EVALUATED. METHODS: FIFTY-TWO HEALTHY VOLUNTEERS (FROM MAY 2019 TO AUGUST 2019, AGE FROM 28 TO 68 YEARS, 23 MALES AND 29 FEMALES (AGE: 40 +/- 8 YEARS; WEIGHT: 68.3 +/- 5.2 KG; HEIGHT: 170.2 +/- 13.1 CM) WERE RECRUITED, AND LUMBODORSAL MUSCLE, INCLUDING THE MULTIFIDUS, LONGISSIMUS, ILIOCOSTALIS, AND QUADRATUS LUMBORUM, ULTRASONIC EXAMINATIONS WERE CARRIED OUT IN THE RELAXED AND CONTRACTED STATES. THE CHANGES IN THE THICKNESS OF THE LUMBODORSAL MUSCLES IN THE RELAXED AND CONTRACTED STATES WERE DYNAMICALLY OBSERVED BY REAL-TIME ULTRASOUND WHEN SUBJECTS WERE PERFORMING THE LOCUST YOGA POSE. THEN, THE THICKNESSES OF THE MUSCLES DURING THE TWO STATES WERE MEASURED TO CALCULATE THE RATIO OF CONTRACTION OF EACH MUSCLE AND DETERMINE THE STATISTICAL SIGNIFICANCE OF THE CHANGE IN THICKNESS OF EACH MUSCLE. RESULTS: THE MEAN THICKNESS OF THE LEFT MULTIFIDUS IN THE RELAXED STATE WAS 1.32 +/- 0.27 CM (95 % CI: 1.24 ~ 1.39), THAT IN THE CONTRACTED STATE WAS 1.60 +/- 0.30 CM (95 % CI: 1.52 ~ 1.69) (OBVIOUSLY DIFFERENT BETWEEN THE RELAXED AND CONTRACTED STATES, P < 0.001), AND THOSE IN THE CORRESPONDING RIGHT SIDE WERE 1.37 +/- 0.31 CM (95 % CI: 1.29 ~ 2.46) AND 1.68 +/- 0.38 CM (95 % CI: 1.58 ~ 1.79) (P < 0.001), RESPECTIVELY. THE MEAN THICKNESS OF THE LEFT QUADRATUS LUMBORUM IN THE RELAXED STATE WAS 1.38 +/- 0.32 CM (95 % CI: 1.29 ~ 1.47), THAT IN THE CONTRACTED STATE WAS 1.62 +/- 0.40 CM (95 % CI: 1.50 ~ 1.73) (P = 0.001), AND THOSE IN THE CORRESPONDING RIGHT SIDE WERE 1.30 +/- 0.32 CM (95 % CI: 1.21 ~ 1.39) AND 1.55 +/- 0.41 CM (95 % CI: 1.44 ~ 1.67) (P = 0.001), RESPECTIVELY. THE MEAN THICKNESS OF THE LEFT LONGISSIMUS IN THE RELAXED WAS 2.33 +/- 0.51 CM (95 % CI: 2.19 ~ 2.47), THAT IN THE CONTRACTED STATE WAS 3.20 +/- 0.61 CM (95 % CI: 3.03 ~ 3.37) (P < 0.001), AND THOSE IN THE CORRESPONDING RIGHT SIDE WERE 2.34 +/- 0.49 CM (95 % CI 2.20 ~ 2.48) AND 3.26 +/- 0.68 CM (95 % CI 3.07 ~ 3.45) (P < 0.001), RESPECTIVELY. THE MEAN THICKNESS OF THE LEFT ILIOCOSTALIS IN THE RELAXED STATE WAS 1.88 +/- 0.41 CM (95 % CI: 1.76 ~ 1.99), THAT IN THE CONTRACTED STATE WAS 2.34 +/- 0.49 CM (95 % CI: 2.00 ~ 2.47) (P < 0.001), AND THOSE IN THE CORRESPONDING RIGHT SIDE WERE 1.98 +/- 0.40 CM (95 % CI: 1.87 ~ 2.09) AND 2.44 +/- 0.56 CM (95 % CI: 2.29 ~ 2.60) (P < 0.001), RESPECTIVELY. THE MEAN CONTRACTED STATE/RESTING STATE (C/R) OF THE LONGISSIMUS WAS 1.39 +/- 0.14 ON THE LEFT AND 1.40 +/- 0.16 ON THE RIGHT. THE MULTIFIDUS AND ILIOCOSTALIS HAD THE SECOND HIGHEST C/R. THE MEAN C/R OF THE MULTIFIDUS WAS 1.23 +/- 0.12 ON THE LEFT AND 1.24 +/- 0.15 ON THE RIGHT, AND THE MEAN C/R OF THE ILIOCOSTALIS WAS 1.25 +/- 0.12 ON THE LEFT AND 1.24 +/- 0.14 ON THE RIGHT. THE QUADRATUS LUMBORUM HAD THE LOWEST C/R, AND THE MEAN C/R OF THE QUADRATUS LUMBORUM WAS 1.17 +/- 0.10 ON THE LEFT AND 1.19 +/- 0.11 ON THE RIGHT. CONCLUSIONS: ULTRASOUND CAN BE USED TO DYNAMICALLY ASSESS THE CONTRACTILE FUNCTION OF THE LUMBAR MUSCLE IN THE LOCUST POSE OF YOGA, THE C/R RATIO CAN BE USED TO INDICATE THE ABILITY OF A MUSCLE TO CONTRACT, AND DYNAMIC ULTRASOUND CAN GUIDE LUMBAR EXERCISE AND FEEDBACK THE EXERCISE RESULTS. THE ESTABLISHMENT OF THIS MODEL ALLOWED DATA REGARDING THE CONTRACTION STATE OF THE LUMBAR MUSCLE TO BE OBTAINED IN A NORMAL POPULATION, AND BASED ON THIS, FUTURE STUDIES CAN FURTHER EXPLORE AND EVALUATE THE CONTRACTION STATE OF THE LUMBAR MUSCLE AFTER YOGA EXERCISE IN CLBP PATIENTS, THE EFFECT EXERCISE ON LUMBAR INSTABILITY AND ON A PATIENT POPULATION AFTER LUMBAR OPERATION.	2021	

9  552  26 CORE MUSCLE FUNCTION DURING SPECIFIC YOGA POSES. OBJECTIVE: TO ASSESS THE POTENTIAL USE OF 11 YOGA POSES IN SPECIFIC TRAINING AND REHABILITATION PROGRAMS VIA EXAMINATION OF THE MUSCLE ACTIVATION PATTERNS IN SELECTED TRUNK AND HIP MUSCLES. DESIGN: REPEATED-MEASURES DESCRIPTIVE STUDY. SETTING: UNIVERSITY LABORATORY, US. PARTICIPANTS: THIRTY HEALTHY YOGA PRACTITIONERS WITH MORE THAN 3 MONTHS YOGA PRACTICE EXPERIENCE (MEAN AGE+/-SD, 32.0+/-12.3 Y; 8 M/22 F) PARTICIPATED. INTERVENTIONS: SURFACE ELECTROMYOGRAPHIC SIGNALS OF UPPER RECTUS ABDOMINIS, LOWER RECTUS ABDOMINIS, LONGISSIMUS THORACIS, EXTERNAL OBLIQUE ABDOMINIS AND GLUTEUS MAXIMUM MUSCLE WERE RECORDED IN 11 YOGA POSES: HALFWAY LIFT, FORWARD FOLD, DOWNWARD FACING DOG, UPWARD FACING DOG, HIGH PLANK, LOW PLANK, CHAIR, MOUNTAIN WITH ARMS DOWN, MOUNTAIN WITH ARMS UP, WARRIOR 1 (BOTH SIDES). MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: ROOT MEAN SQUARE VALUES OF EACH MUSCLE DURING EACH POSE, NORMALIZED BY THE MAXIMAL VOLUNTARY CONTRACTION. RESULTS: THERE WERE SIGNIFICANT MAIN EFFECTS OF POSE (P<.001) AND MUSCLE (P<.001), AND A SIGNIFICANT POSEXMUSCLE INTERACTION (P=.001). THE POST HOC ANALYSIS REVEALED UNIQUE PATTERNS FOR THE FIVE MUSCLES OF INTEREST FOR EACH OF THE 11 POSES (P<.024). CONCLUSIONS: VARIATIONS IN CORE MUSCLE FIRING PATTERNS DEPEND ON THE TRUNK AND PELVIC POSITIONS DURING THESE POSES. TRAINING PROGRAMS CAN BE DEVELOPED BY CHOOSING PARTICULAR POSES TO TARGET SPECIFIC CORE MUSCLES FOR ADDRESSING LOW BACK PAIN AND DECLINES IN PERFORMANCE. THE HIGH PLANK, LOW PLANK AND DOWNWARD FACING DOG POSES ARE EFFECTIVE FOR STRENGTHENING EXTERNAL OBLIQUE ABDOMINIS, CHAIR AND WARRIOR 1 POSES FOR TARGETING GLUTEUS MAXIMUM, AND CHAIR AND HALFWAY LIFT POSES FOR STRENGTHENING LONGISSIMUS THORACIS. AND THESE THREE MUSCLES COULD BE STRENGTHENED BY THE UPWARD FACING DOG POSE.	2014	
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                   
10 1264  30 FLEXIBILITY, FUNCTIONAL AUTONOMY AND QUALITY OF LIFE (QOL) IN ELDERLY YOGA PRACTITIONERS. THE AIM OF THIS STUDY WAS TO ASSESS THE LEVELS OF FLEXIBILITY, FUNCTIONAL AUTONOMY AND QOL IN ELDERLY YOGA PRACTITIONERS. THE SUBJECTS WERE DIVIDED INTO A YOGA GROUP (YG; N = 52; AGE = 66.79 +/- 3.30 YEARS; BMI = 24.77 +/- 3.18) AND CONTROL GROUP (CG; N = 31; AGE = 69.33 +/- 4.84 YEARS; BMI = 24.32 +/- 3.71) AND SUBMITTED TO FLEXIBILITY TESTS THROUGH GONIOMETRY, THE LADEG AUTONOMY PROTOCOL AND QOL, USING THE WHOQOL-OLD QUESTIONNAIRE. REPEATED MEASURES ANOVA SHOWED INCREASES IN ARTICULAR RANGE OF MOTION IN SHOULDER ABDUCTION (DELTA%SA = 14.11%; P = 0.0001), HORIZONTAL SHOULDER EXTENSION (DELTA%HSE = 33.90%; P = 0.0001), LUMBAR SPINE FLEXION (DELTA%LSF = 50.74%; P = 0.0001), HIP FLEXION (DELTA%HF = 35.75%; P = 0.0001), HIP EXTENSION (DELTA%HE = 10.93%; P = 0.021) AND KNEE FLEXION (DELTA%KF = 3.90%; P = 0.001) AND IN THE GDLAM AUTONOMY INDEX (DELTA%AI = -13.67%; P = 0.0001) IN THE YG COMPARED TO THE CG. THE MANN-WHITNEY TEST REVEALED INCREASES IN QOL SCORES IN FACET 1 (DELTA%FAC1 = 9.04%; P=0.043), FACET 5 (DELTA%FAC5 = 51.06%; P = 0.0001) AND IN OVERALL QOL (DELTA%OQOL = 8.13%; P = 0.046) IN THE YG COMPARED TO THE CG. THE REMAINING VARIABLES SHOWED NO SIGNIFICANT INTERGROUP MODIFICATIONS. THUS, THE STUDY SUGGESTS THAT THE REGULAR PRACTICE OF YOGA MAY LEAD TO IMPROVED RANGE OF MOTION IN THE PERFORMANCE OF ACTIVITIES OF DAILY LIVING IN ELDERLY WOMEN.	2011	
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                             
11 1775  14 PRACTICE OF YOGA MAY CAUSE DAMAGE OF BOTH SCIATIC NERVES: A CASE REPORT. SCIATIC NERVE TRAUMATIC DAMAGE VERY RARELY OCCURS BILATERALLY. WE DESCRIBE THE CASE OF A 67-YEAR-OLD WOMAN WHO REPORTED A BILATERAL TRAUMATIC LESION OF THE SCIATIC NERVE DURING PRACTICE OF YOGA. NERVE CONDUCTION STUDIES SHOWED A BILATERAL SCIATIC NERVE NEUROPATHY, MOSTLY AFFECTING THE PERONEAL COMPONENT. LUMBAR PLEXUS MRI DOCUMENTED REGULAR ANATOMICAL FEATURES OF THE MAIN PRINCIPAL NERVE ROOTS WITH BILATERAL T2 SIGNAL ALTERATION OF ROOTS L4, L5 AND S1 THAT EXTENDED INTO THE SCIATIC NERVES SHOWING BOTH INCREASE IN SIZE, PROBABLY RELATED TO CHRONIC INJURY OF NERVES, AND AN ALTERATION IN DIFFUSION SIGNAL THAT SUGGESTED A RECENT ACUTE OVERLAPPED PROCESS.	2013	
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                    
12  968  40 EFFECTS OF AN 8-MONTH ASHTANGA-BASED YOGA INTERVENTION ON BONE METABOLISM IN MIDDLE-AGED PREMENOPAUSAL WOMEN: A RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED STUDY. ALTHOUGH YOGA HAS THE POTENTIAL TO BE AN ALTERNATIVE PHYSICAL ACTIVITY TO ENHANCE BONE HEALTH, THERE IS A LACK OF HIGH QUALITY EVIDENCE FOR THIS TYPE OF INTERVENTION. THE PURPOSE OF THIS RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED TRIAL WAS TO EXAMINE THE EFFECTS OF A PROGRESSIVE 8-MONTH ASHTANGA-BASED YOGA PROGRAM ON BONE TURNOVER MARKERS (BTM), AREAL BONE MINERAL DENSITY (ABMD) AND VOLUMETRIC BONE CHARACTERISTICS IN PREMENOPAUSAL WOMEN. THIRTY-FOUR PREMENOPAUSAL WOMEN (35-50 YEARS) WERE RANDOMLY ASSIGNED EITHER TO A YOGA GROUP (YE, N = 16) OR A CONTROL GROUP (CON, N = 18). PARTICIPANTS IN YE GROUP PERFORMED 60 MINUTES OF AN ASHTANGA-BASED YOGA SERIES 2 TIMES/WEEK WITH ONE DAY BETWEEN SESSIONS FOR 8 MONTHS, AND THE SESSION INTENSITY WAS PROGRESSIVELY INCREASED BY ADDING THE NUMBER OF SUN SALUTATIONS (SS). PARTICIPANTS IN CON WERE ENCOURAGED TO MAINTAIN THEIR NORMAL DAILY LIFESTYLES MONITORED BY THE BONE SPECIFIC PHYSICAL ACTIVITY QUESTIONNAIRE (BPAQ) AT 2 MONTH INTERVALS FOR 8 MONTHS. BODY COMPOSITION WAS MEASURED BY DUAL ENERGY X-RAY ABSORPTIOMETRY (DXA). BONE FORMATION (BONE ALKALINE PHOSPHATASE, BONE ALP) AND BONE RESORPTION (TARTRATE-RESISTANT ACID PHOSPHATASE-5B, TRAP5B) MARKERS WERE ASSESSED AT BASELINE AND AFTER 8 MONTHS. ABMD OF TOTAL BODY, LUMBAR SPINE AND DUAL PROXIMAL FEMUR AND TIBIA BONE CHARACTERISTICS WERE MEASURED USING DXA AND PERIPHERAL QUANTITATIVE COMPUTED TOMOGRAPHY (PQCT), RESPECTIVELY. WE FOUND THAT THE SERUM BONE ALP CONCENTRATIONS WERE MAINTAINED IN YE, BUT SIGNIFICANTLY (P = 0.005) DECREASED IN CON AFTER THE 8 MONTH INTERVENTION, AND THERE WERE SIGNIFICANT (P = 0.002) GROUP DIFFERENCES IN BONE ALP PERCENT CHANGES (YE 9.1 +/- 4.0% VS. CON -7.1 +/- 2.3%). NO CHANGES IN TRAP5B WERE FOUND IN EITHER GROUP. THE 8-MONTH YOGA PROGRAM DID NOT INCREASE ABMD OR TIBIA BONE STRENGTH VARIABLES. BODY COMPOSITION RESULTS SHOWED NO CHANGES IN WEIGHT, FAT MASS, OR % FAT, BUT SMALL SIGNIFICANT INCREASES IN BONE FREE LEAN BODY MASS OCCURRED IN BOTH GROUPS. THE FINDINGS OF THIS STUDY SUGGEST THAT REGULAR LONG-TERM ASHTANGA YOGA HAD A SMALL POSITIVE EFFECT ON BONE FORMATION BUT DID NOT ALTER ABMD OR TIBIA BONE CHARACTERISTICS IN PREMENOPAUSAL WOMEN. KEY POINTSREGULAR LONG-TERM ASHTANGA-BASED YOGA PROGRAM HAD A SMALL POSITIVE EFFECT ON BONE FORMATION, BUT NO EFFECTS WERE FOUND ON BONE RESORPTION.NONE OF THE BONE DENSITY OR GEOMETRY VARIABLES WERE CHANGED BY THE 8-MONTH ASHTANGA-BASED YOGA INTERVENTION.FUTURE YOGA INTERVENTIONS SHOULD FOCUS ON LONGER DURATION AND GREATER FREQUENCY TO ELICIT IMPROVEMENTS IN BONE MINERAL DENSITY.	2015	
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                         
13 2333  20 TWELVE-MINUTE DAILY YOGA REGIMEN REVERSES OSTEOPOROTIC BONE LOSS. OBJECTIVE: ASSESS THE EFFECTIVENESS OF SELECTED YOGA POSTURES IN RAISING BONE MINERAL DENSITY (BMD). METHODS: TEN-YEAR STUDY OF 741 INTERNET-RECRUITED VOLUNTEERS COMPARING PREYOGA BMD CHANGES WITH POSTYOGA BMD CHANGES. OUTCOME MEASURES: DUAL-ENERGY X-RAY ABSORPTIOMETRIC SCANS. OPTIONAL RADIOGRAPHS OF HIPS AND SPINE AND BONE QUALITY STUDY (7 TESLA). RESULTS: BONE MINERAL DENSITY IMPROVED IN SPINE, HIPS, AND FEMUR OF THE 227 MODERATELY AND FULLY COMPLIANT PATIENTS. MONTHLY GAIN IN BMD WAS SIGNIFICANT IN SPINE (0.0029 G/CM(2), P = .005) AND FEMUR (0.00022 G/CM(2), P = .053), BUT IN 1 COHORT, ALTHOUGH MEAN GAIN IN HIP BMD WAS 50%, LARGE INDIVIDUAL DIFFERENCES RAISED THE CONFIDENCE INTERVAL AND THE GAIN WAS NOT SIGNIFICANT FOR TOTAL HIP (0.000357 G/CM(2)). NO YOGA-RELATED SERIOUS INJURIES WERE IMAGED OR REPORTED. BONE QUALITY APPEARED QUALITATIVELY IMPROVED IN YOGA PRACTITIONERS. CONCLUSION: YOGA APPEARS TO RAISE BMD IN THE SPINE AND THE FEMUR SAFELY.	2016	
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                             
14   58  25 A COMPARISON OF EMG OUTPUT OF FOUR LOWER EXTREMITY MUSCLES DURING SELECTED YOGA POSTURES. THE PURPOSE OF THIS STUDY WAS TO USE SURFACE ELECTROMYOGRAPHY (EMG) ANALYSIS TO EXAMINE THE MUSCLE ACTIVATION OF THE ANTERIOR TIBIALIS (TA), GASTROCNEMIUS (GA), RECTUS FEMORIS (RF) AND BICEPS FEMORIS (BF) MUSCLES DURING SEVERAL YOGA POSES: TREE POSE (VRKSASHANA), HALF MOON POSE (ARDHA CHANDRASANA) AND WARRIOR III (VIRABADRASANA) WHEN COMPARED TO A REST POSE (MOUNTAIN POSE). TEN HEALTHY FEMALES WITH MORE THAN 3 MONTHS OF CONTINUOUS YOGA EXPERIENCE WHO PRACTICED AT LEAST 1.5H PER WEEK WERE RECRUITED. EMG ACTIVITY WAS RECORDED FROM THE AFOREMENTIONED MUSCLES DURING MOUNTAIN POSE ("REST") FOR 30S, THREE TIMES. SUBJECTS THEN PERFORMED THE FOLLOWING YOGA POSES IN A RANDOMIZED SEQUENCE WHILE SURFACE EMG ACTIVITY WAS RECORDED: TREE POSE, HALF-MOON, AND WARRIOR III. EACH POSE WAS HELD FOR 20S TO 30S AND PERFORMED THREE TIMES. EMG DATA WERE BAND PASS FILTERED AND THE ROOT MEAN SQUARE (RMS) WAS OBTAINED. THE PEAK RMS OF EACH OF THE RESTING TRIALS WAS OBTAINED AND AVERAGED TO PRODUCE AN AVERAGE PEAK RESTING RMS VALUE. THE STUDY REVEALED SIGNIFICANTLY GREATER EMG ACTIVITY IN TA AND GA IN ALL THREE POSES WHEN COMPARED TO BF AND RF. BF PRODUCED GREATER EMG ACTIVITY THAN RF IN WARRIOR III. IN CONCLUSION, SINGLE LIMB YOGA POSES REQUIRE INCREASED USE OF THE ANKLE MUSCULATURE WHEN COMPARED TO THIGH MUSCULATURE.	2019	
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                    
15 1656  14 MUSCULOSKELETAL INJURIES RELATED TO YOGA: IMAGING OBSERVATIONS. OBJECTIVE: THE PURPOSE OF THIS ARTICLE IS TO DESCRIBE THE IMAGING APPEARANCES OF MUSCULOSKELETAL INJURIES RELATED TO YOGA. WE PERFORMED AN AUTOMATED SEARCH IN THE DATABASE OF A LARGE TERTIARY CARE CENTER AND CONDUCTED A RETROSPECTIVE ANALYSIS OF THE IMAGING FINDINGS IN 38 PATIENTS OVER A 9-YEAR PERIOD. CONCLUSION: THE MOST FREQUENTLY ENCOUNTERED MUSCULOSKELETAL INJURIES WERE TENDINOUS LESIONS, INCLUDING TEARS OF THE SUPRASPINATUS, ACHILLES, AND PERONEUS BREVIS TENDONS AND FIBROCARTILAGINOUS TEARS INVOLVING THE MEDIAL MENISCUS, ACETABULAR LABRUM, GLENOID LABRUM, AND LUMBAR DISK WITH EXTRUSION.	2012	
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                        
16 1965  34 SERIAL CASE REPORTING YOGA FOR IDIOPATHIC AND DEGENERATIVE SCOLIOSIS. BACKGROUND: NON-SURGICAL TECHNIQUES FOR TREATING SCOLIOSIS FREQUENTLY FOCUS ON REALIGNING THE SPINE, TYPICALLY BY MUSCULAR RELAXATION OR MUSCULAR OR LIGAMENTOUS STRETCHING. HOWEVER, SUCH TREATMENTS, WHICH INCLUDE PHYSICAL THERAPEUTIC, CHIROPRACTIC, AND BRACING TECHNIQUES, ARE INCONSISTENTLY SUPPORTED BY CURRENT EVIDENCE. IN THIS STUDY, WE ASSESS THE POSSIBLE BENEFITS OF ASYMMETRICAL STRENGTHENING OF TRUNCAL MUSCLES ON THE CONVEX SIDE OF THE SCOLIOTIC CURVE THROUGH A SINGLE YOGA POSE, THE SIDE PLANK POSE, IN IDIOPATHIC AND DEGENERATIVE SCOLIOSIS. METHODS: TWENTY-FIVE PATIENTS WITH IDIOPATHIC OR DEGENERATIVE SCOLIOSIS AND PRIMARY CURVES MEASURING 6 TO 120 DEGREES BY THE COBB METHOD HAD SPINAL RADIOGRAPHS AND WERE THEN TAUGHT THE SIDE PLANK POSE. AFTER 1 WEEK PERFORMING THE POSE WITH CONVEXITY DOWNWARD FOR 10 TO 20 SECONDS, THEY WERE INSTRUCTED TO MAINTAIN THE POSTURE ONCE DAILY FOR AS LONG AS POSSIBLE ON THAT ONE SIDE ONLY. A SECOND SERIES OF SPINAL RADIOGRAPHS WAS TAKEN 3 TO 22 MONTHS LATER. PRE- AND POST-YOGA COBB MEASUREMENTS WERE COMPARED. RESULTS: THE MEAN SELF-REPORTED PRACTICE OF THE YOGA POSE WAS 1.5 MINUTES PER DAY, 6.1 DAYS PER WEEK, FOR A MEAN FOLLOW-UP PERIOD OF 6.8 MONTHS. AMONG ALL PATIENTS, A SIGNIFICANT IMPROVEMENT IN THE COBB ANGLE OF THE PRIMARY SCOLIOTIC CURVE OF 32.0% WAS FOUND. AMONG 19 COMPLIANT PATIENTS, THE MEAN IMPROVEMENT ROSE TO 40.9%. IMPROVEMENTS DID NOT DIFFER SIGNIFICANTLY AMONG ADOLESCENT IDIOPATHIC AND DEGENERATIVE SUBTYPES (49.6% AND 38.4%, RESPECTIVELY). CONCLUSIONS: ASYMMETRICALLY STRENGTHENING THE CONVEX SIDE OF THE PRIMARY CURVE WITH DAILY PRACTICE OF THE SIDE PLANK POSE HELD FOR AS LONG AS POSSIBLE FOR AN AVERAGE OF 6.8 MONTHS SIGNIFICANTLY REDUCED THE ANGLE OF PRIMARY SCOLIOTIC CURVES. THESE RESULTS WARRANT FURTHER TESTING.	2014	
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                          
17  134  38 A PRELIMINARY INVESTIGATION OF LUMBAR TACTILE ACUITY IN YOGA PRACTITIONERS. BACKGROUND: TACTILE ACUITY IN THE BACK RELATES TO VOLUNTARY LUMBO-PELVIC CONTROL AND IS LOWER IN CHRONIC LOW BACK PAIN (CLBP) PATIENTS. TWO-POINT DISCRIMINATION (TPD) THRESHOLDS ARE HIGHER, INDICATING DECREASED TACTILE ACUITY IN PATIENTS WITH CLBP. YOGA HAS BEEN SHOWN TO HELP RELIEVE CLBP. OBJECTIVES: THIS STUDY INVESTIGATED THE HYPOTHESIS THAT REGULAR PRACTITIONERS OF YOGA HAVE INCREASED TACTILE ACUITY (I.E., LOWER TPD THRESHOLDS) WHEN COMPARED TO MATCHED CONTROLS WHO REGULARLY PERFORM GYM-BASED (RESISTANCE TRAINING OR AEROBIC-TYPE) EXERCISE. METHOD: TACTILE ACUITY IN THE LOW BACK WAS ASSESSED USING TPD IN 16 LONG-TERM PRACTITIONERS OF YOGA (5 ASHTANGA, 5 BIKRAM, AND 6 IYENGAR PRACTITIONERS) AND 16 AGE- AND GENDER-MATCHED HEALTHY CONTROLS WHO EXERCISE (WITH WEIGHTS AND AEROBIC EXERCISE). RESULTS: THE YOGA PRACTITIONERS' TPD WAS LOWER THAN THAT OF THE EXERCISERS, INDICATING GREATER TACTILE ACUITY IN THE LOW BACK. WHILE THERE WAS NO DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THE TPD OF THE PRACTITIONERS OF DIFFERENT YOGA STYLES, THE TPD OF THE ASHTANGA YOGA PARTICIPANTS WERE SIGNIFICANTLY LOWER THAN THOSE OF THE EXERCISERS. THE YOGIS WHOSE MAIN REASONS TO PRACTICE YOGA WERE FOR "MEDITATION OR INCREASED MINDFULNESS" AND FOR "WELL-BEING" SHOWED A NONSIGNIFICANT TREND OF HIGHER TACTILE ACUITY THAN THOSE WHO DID YOGA FOR "PHYSICAL EXERCISE." THERE WAS NO ASSOCIATION BETWEEN TPD THRESHOLD AND CUMULATIVE AMOUNT OF YOGA PRACTICE IN TERMS OF HOURS PER WEEK AND YEARS OF EXPERIENCE. HOWEVER, INCREASED HOURS OF EXERCISE PER WEEK CORRELATED WITH HIGHER TPD. CONCLUSION: THE FINDINGS SUGGEST THAT THERE MAY BE A RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN YOGA PRACTICE AND ENHANCED TACTILE ACUITY IN THE LOW BACK.	2014	
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                    
18 1654  33 MUSCLE UTILIZATION PATTERNS VARY BY SKILL LEVELS OF THE PRACTITIONERS ACROSS SPECIFIC YOGA POSES (ASANAS). OBJECTIVE: TO COMPARE MUSCLE ACTIVATION PATTERNS IN 14 DOMINANT SIDE MUSCLES DURING DIFFERENT YOGA POSES ACROSS THREE SKILL LEVELS. DESIGN: MIXED REPEATED-MEASURES DESCRIPTIVE STUDY. SETTING: UNIVERSITY NEUROMUSCULAR RESEARCH LABORATORY, MIAMI, US. PARTICIPANTS: A GROUP OF 36 YOGA PRACTITIONERS (9 M/27 F; MEAN +/- SD, 31.6 +/- 12.6 YEARS) WITH AT LEAST 3 MONTHS YOGA PRACTICE EXPERIENCE. INTERVENTIONS: EACH OF THE 11 SURYA NAMASKAR POSES A AND B WAS PERFORMED SEPARATELY FOR 15S AND THE SURFACE ELECTROMYOGRAPHY FOR 14 MUSCLES WERE RECORDED. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: NORMALIZED ROOT MEAN SQUARE OF THE ELECTROMYOGRAPHIC SIGNAL (NRMSEMG) FOR 14 MUSCLES (5 UPPER BODY, 4 TRUNK, 5 LOWER BODY). RESULTS: THERE WERE SIGNIFICANT MAIN EFFECTS OF POSE FOR ALL FOURTEEN MUSCLES EXCEPT MIDDLE TRAPEZIUS (P<.02) AND OF SKILL LEVEL FOR THE VASTUS MEDIALIS; P=.027). A SIGNIFICANT SKILL LEVEL X POSE INTERACTION EXISTED FOR FIVE MUSCLES (PECTORALIS MAJOR STERNAL HEAD, ANTERIOR DELTOID, MEDIAL DELTOID, UPPER RECTUS ABDOMINIS AND GASTROCNEMIUS LATERALIS; P<.05). POST HOC ANALYSES USING BONFERRONI COMPARISONS INDICATED THAT DIFFERENT POSES ACTIVATED SPECIFIC MUSCLE GROUPS; HOWEVER, THIS VARIED BY SKILL LEVEL. CONCLUSION: OUR RESULTS INDICATE THAT DIFFERENT POSES CAN PRODUCE SPECIFIC MUSCLE ACTIVATION PATTERNS WHICH MAY VARY DUE TO PRACTITIONERS' SKILL LEVELS. THIS INFORMATION CAN BE USED IN DESIGNING REHABILITATION AND TRAINING PROGRAMS AND FOR CUING DURING YOGA TRAINING.	2014	
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                         
19  633  31 DISC EXTRUSIONS AND BULGES IN NONSPECIFIC LOW BACK PAIN AND SCIATICA: EXPLORATORY RANDOMISED CONTROLLED TRIAL COMPARING YOGA THERAPY AND NORMAL MEDICAL TREATMENT. BACKGROUND: PREVIOUS TRIALS OF YOGA THERAPY FOR NONSPECIFIC LOW BACK PAIN (NSLBP) (WITHOUT SCIATICA) SHOWED BENEFICIAL EFFECTS. OBJECTIVE: TO TEST EFFECTS OF YOGA THERAPY ON PAIN AND DISABILITY ASSOCIATED WITH LUMBAR DISC EXTRUSIONS AND BULGES. METHODS: PARALLEL-GROUP, RANDOMISED, CONTROLLED TRIAL. SIXTY-ONE ADULTS FROM RURAL POPULATION, AGED 20-45, WITH NSLBP OR SCIATICA, AND DISC EXTRUSIONS OR BULGES. RANDOMISED TO YOGA (N=30) AND CONTROL (N=31). YOGA: 3-MONTH YOGA COURSE OF GROUP CLASSES AND HOME PRACTICE, DESIGNED TO ENSURE SAFETY FOR DISC EXTRUSIONS. CONTROL: NORMAL MEDICAL CARE. OUTCOME MEASURES (3-4 MONTHS) PRIMARY: ROLAND MORRIS DISABILITY QUESTIONNAIRE (RMDQ); WORST PAIN IN PAST TWO WEEKS. SECONDARY: ABERDEEN LOW BACK PAIN SCALE; STRAIGHT LEG RAISE TEST; STRUCTURAL CHANGES. RESULTS: DISC PROJECTIONS PER CASE RANGED FROM ONE BULGE OR ONE EXTRUSION TO THREE BULGES PLUS TWO EXTRUSIONS. SIXTY-TWO PERCENT HAD SCIATICA. INTENTION-TO-TREAT ANALYSIS OF THE RMDQ DATA, ADJUSTED FOR AGE, SEX AND BASELINE RMDQ SCORES, GAVE A YOGA GROUP SCORE 3.29 POINTS LOWER THAN CONTROL GROUP (0.98, 5.61; P=0.006) AT 3 MONTHS. NO OTHER SIGNIFICANT DIFFERENCES IN THE ENDPOINTS OCCURRED. NO ADVERSE EFFECTS OF YOGA WERE REPORTED. CONCLUSIONS: YOGA THERAPY CAN BE SAFE AND BENEFICIAL FOR PATIENTS WITH NSLBP OR SCIATICA, ACCOMPANIED BY DISC EXTRUSIONS AND BULGES.	2015	
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                           
20 1524  28 ISOMETRIC YOGA-LIKE MANEUVERS IMPROVE ADOLESCENT IDIOPATHIC SCOLIOSIS-A NONRANDOMIZED CONTROL TRIAL. OBJECTIVE: ASSESS THERAPEUTIC VALUE OF SPECIFIC YOGA POSES FOR THORACIC AND LUMBAR ADOLESCENT IDIOPATHIC SCOLIOSIS (AIS) TAUGHT IN OFFICE OR INTERNET. STUDY DESIGN: NONRANDOMIZED CONTROL TRIAL: FIFTY-SIX ADOLESCENTS (MEAN AGE 14.0 YEARS; MEAN RISSER 3.0) WERE RECRUITED FROM OUR CLINIC; 41 DID THE SIDE-PLANK, THE HALF-MOON AND ELEVATED SIDE PLANK POSES AS APPROPRIATE (TREATMENT GROUP) AND 15 DID NOT (CONTROLS). THIRTY CURVES WERE TREATED IN OFFICE, 30 VIA INTERNET. CURVE CHANGE WAS EVALUATED BY BLINDED SERIAL COBB ANGLES, AND ANALYZED USING MANN-WHITNEY U, PAIRED T-TESTS AND CHI(2). RESULTS: MEAN LUMBAR AND THORACOLUMBAR COBB ANGLE CHANGE WAS -9.2 (95% CI = -11.8, -6.6) IN THE TREATMENT GROUP AND 5.4 (95% CI = 1.7, 9.0) IN CONTROLS. BOTH TREATMENT GROUP IMPROVEMENT AND DETERIORATION IN CONTROLS WERE SIGNIFICANT (TREATMENT GROUP: PAIRED T-TEST T = -7.1, DF = 40, P = .000; CONTROLS: T = 3.2, DF = 12, P = .008). MEAN THORACIC COBB ANGLE CHANGE WAS -7.1 (95% CI = -13.1, -1.2) IN THE TREATMENT GROUP AND 9.3 (95% CI = 4.5, 14.6) IN CONTROLS. BOTH CHANGES WERE SIGNIFICANT (PAIRED T-TEST T = -3.3, DF = 21, P = .022 FOR TREATMENT GROUP; T = 4.5, DF = 5, P = .006 FOR CONTROLS). NINE INTERNET PATIENTS WERE NON-COMPLIANT VS. 6 OFFICE PATIENTS. OFFICE PATIENTS IMPROVED 1.6 DEGREES/MONTH OR 5.5%/MONTH; INTERNET PATIENTS IMPROVED .72 DEGREES/MONTH OR 3.3%/MONTH. CONCLUSION: THESE YOGA POSES SHOW PROMISE FOR REVERSING ADOLESCENT IDIOPATHIC SCOLIOSIS. TELEMEDICINE HAD GREATER NON-COMPLIANCE AND LOWER EFFICACY BUT STILL PRODUCED PATIENT IMPROVEMENT.	2021