1 34 146 A 12-WEEK IYENGAR YOGA PROGRAM IMPROVED BALANCE AND MOBILITY IN OLDER COMMUNITY-DWELLING PEOPLE: A PILOT RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED TRIAL. BACKGROUND: EXERCISE THAT CHALLENGES BALANCE CAN IMPROVE MOBILITY AND PREVENT FALLS IN OLDER ADULTS. YOGA AS A PHYSICAL ACTIVITY OPTION FOR OLDER ADULTS IS NOT WELL STUDIED. THIS TRIAL EVALUATED THE FEASIBILITY AND EFFECT OF A 12-WEEK IYENGAR YOGA PROGRAM ON BALANCE AND MOBILITY IN OLDER PEOPLE. METHODS: WE CONDUCTED A BLINDED, PILOT RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED TRIAL WITH INTENTION-TO-TREAT ANALYSIS. PARTICIPANTS WERE 54 COMMUNITY DWELLERS (MEAN AGE 68 YEARS, SD 7.1) NOT CURRENTLY PARTICIPATING IN YOGA OR TAI CHI. THE INTERVENTION GROUP (N = 27) PARTICIPATED IN A 12-WEEK, TWICE-WEEKLY YOGA PROGRAM FOCUSED ON STANDING POSTURES AND RECEIVED A FALL PREVENTION EDUCATION BOOKLET. THE CONTROL GROUP (N = 27) RECEIVED THE EDUCATION BOOKLET ONLY. PRIMARY OUTCOME WAS STANDING BALANCE COMPONENT OF THE SHORT PHYSICAL PERFORMANCE BATTERY WITH ADDITION OF ONE-LEGGED STANCE TIME (STANDING BALANCE). SECONDARY OUTCOMES WERE THE TIMED SIT-TO-STAND TEST, TIMED 4-M WALK, ONE-LEGGED STAND WITH EYES CLOSED, AND SHORT FALLS EFFICACY SCALE-INTERNATIONAL. FEASIBILITY WAS MEASURED BY RECORDING CLASS ATTENDANCE AND ADVERSE EVENTS. RESULTS: FIFTY-TWO PARTICIPANTS COMPLETED FOLLOW-UP ASSESSMENTS. THE INTERVENTION GROUP SIGNIFICANTLY IMPROVED COMPARED WITH CONTROL GROUP ON STANDING BALANCE (MEAN DIFFERENCE = 1.52 SECONDS, 95% CI 0.10-2.96, P = .04), SIT-TO-STAND TEST (MEAN DIFFERENCE = -3.43 SECONDS, 95% CI -5.23 TO -1.64, P < .001), 4-M WALK (MEAN DIFFERENCE = -0.50 SECONDS, 95% CI -0.72 TO -0.28, P < .001), AND ONE-LEGGED STAND WITH EYES CLOSED (MEAN DIFFERENCE = 1.93 SECONDS, 95% CI 0.40-3.46, P = .02). AVERAGE CLASS ATTENDANCE WAS 20 OF 24 CLASSES (83%). NO SERIOUS ADVERSE EVENTS OCCURRED. CONCLUSIONS: THIS TRIAL DEMONSTRATES THE BALANCE AND MOBILITY-RELATED BENEFITS AND FEASIBILITY OF IYENGAR YOGA FOR OLDER PEOPLE. THE FALL PREVENTION EFFECT OF IYENGAR YOGA WARRANTS FURTHER INVESTIGATION. 2013 2 2134 47 THE EFFECTS OF A THERAPEUTIC YOGA PROGRAM ON POSTURAL CONTROL, MOBILITY, AND GAIT SPEED IN COMMUNITY-DWELLING OLDER ADULTS. OBJECTIVE: TO EXAMINE THE EFFECTS OF A 12-WEEK THERAPEUTIC YOGA PROGRAM ON GAIT SPEED, POSTURAL CONTROL, AND MOBILITY IN COMMUNITY-DWELLING OLDER ADULTS. DESIGN: QUASI-EXPERIMENTAL STUDY WITH A PRETEST/POST-TEST DESIGN. RESEARCHERS EVALUATED CHANGES OVER TIME (PRETEST TO POST-TEST) IN ALL OUTCOME MEASURES. PAIRED T-TESTS WERE USED TO ANALYZE NORMAL AND FAST GAIT SPEED, TIMED UP AND GO TEST, AND TIMED UP AND GO DUAL TASK. WILCOXON SIGNED-RANK TEST WAS USED TO EVALUATE SCORES FOR THE MINI-BESTEST (MBT). SETTING: YOGA CLASSES WERE PERFORMED AT A LOCAL SENIOR CENTER. BLIND EXAMINERS WHO WERE PREVIOUSLY TRAINED IN THE OUTCOME MEASURES PERFORMED ALL PRETESTS AND POST-TESTS AT THE SITE. PARTICIPANTS: THIRTEEN ADULTS (12 WOMEN AND 1 MAN, WITH A MEAN AGE+/-STANDARD DEVIATION OF 72+/-6.9 YEARS) COMPLETED THE STUDY. RESEARCH PARTICIPANTS HAD MINIMAL TO NO YOGA EXPERIENCE. INTERVENTIONS: A 12-WEEK, 60-MINUTE, BIWEEKLY KRIPALU YOGA CLASS DESIGNED SPECIFICALLY FOR COMMUNITY-DWELLING OLDER ADULTS. OUTCOME MEASURES: POSTURAL CONTROL (MBT), MOBILITY (TIMED UP AND GO TEST), AND GAIT SPEED (NORMAL AND FAST) WERE ASSESSED. RESULTS: ALL 13 PARTICIPANTS ATTENDED AT LEAST 19 OF THE 24 CLASSES (80% ATTENDANCE). STATISTICALLY SIGNIFICANT IMPROVEMENTS WERE SEEN IN THE MBT (P=0.039), NORMAL GAIT SPEED (P=0.015), FAST GAIT SPEED (P=0.001), TIMED UP AND GO TEST (P=0.045), AND TIMED UP AND GO DUAL-TASK (P=0.05). CONCLUSIONS: IMPROVEMENTS IN POSTURAL CONTROL AND MOBILITY AS MEASURED BY THE MBT AND TIMED UP AND GO GAIT AS MEASURED BY FAST GAIT SPEED INDICATE THAT RESEARCH PARTICIPANTS BENEFITTED FROM THE THERAPEUTIC YOGA INTERVENTION. THE YOGA PROGRAM DESIGNED FOR THIS STUDY INCLUDED ACTIVITIES IN STANDING, SITTING, AND LYING ON THE FLOOR AND MAY BE EFFECTIVE IN IMPROVING MOBILITY, POSTURAL CONTROL, AND GAIT SPEED IN COMMUNITY-DWELLING OLDER ADULTS. 2014 3 120 24 A PILOT STUDY OF THE EFFECTS OF CHAIR YOGA AND CHAIR-BASED EXERCISE ON BIOPSYCHOSOCIAL OUTCOMES IN OLDER ADULTS WITH LOWER EXTREMITY OSTEOARTHRITIS. THIS PILOT STUDY EXAMINED WHETHER CHAIR YOGA AND CHAIR-BASED EXERCISE ARE EFFECTIVE IN MANAGING BIOPSYCHOSOCIAL OUTCOMES FOR OLDER ADULTS WITH LOWER EXTREMITY OSTEOARTHRITIS. BOTH INTERVENTIONS IMPROVED PHYSICAL FUNCTION AND MOBILITY OVER TIME, ALTHOUGH NO SIGNIFICANT DIFFERENCES BETWEEN THE 2 INTERVENTIONS WERE IDENTIFIED. 2019 4 1314 29 HEALTH-RELATED QUALITY OF LIFE CHANGES AFTER THE MERGING YOGA AND OCCUPATIONAL THERAPY FOR PARKINSON'S DISEASE PROGRAM: A MIXED-METHODS STUDY. BACKGROUND: TO UNDERSTAND CHANGES IN HEALTH-RELATED QUALITY OF LIFE (HRQOL) AFTER THE MERGING YOGA AND OCCUPATIONAL THERAPY FOR PARKINSON'S DISEASE (MY-OT FOR PD) PROGRAM. MATERIALS AND METHODS: WE USED A MIXED-METHODS CONVERGENT DESIGN AND ADMINISTERED THE PARKINSON'S DISEASE QUESTIONNAIRE-8 (PDQ-8), A MEASURE OF HRQOL, WITH 17 PARTICIPANTS. WE CONSIDERED SCORES 8 WEEKS BEFORE MY-OT FOR PD, JUST BEFORE, AND UPON COMPLETION. ADDITIONALLY, WE COMPLETED TWO FOCUS GROUPS FOLLOWING THE PROGRAM WITH 16 PARTICIPANTS TO ASSESS QUALITATIVE CHANGES IN HRQOL. RESULTS: THERE WERE NO SIGNIFICANT DIFFERENCES IN PDQ-8 SCORES BETWEEN TIME POINTS, F(2,32) = 1.60, P = 0.22, PARTIAL ETA(2) = 0.09. PARTICIPANTS DID DISCUSS IMPROVEMENTS IN ALL 8 HRQOL DOMAINS, FREQUENTLY REGARDING MOBILITY AND ACTIVITIES OF DAILY LIVING. CONCLUSION: RESULTS DIVERGED, WITH QUANTITATIVE RESULTS SHOWING NO SIGNIFICANT IMPROVEMENT IN HRQOL AND QUALITATIVE RESULTS INDICATING PARTICIPANT PERCEIVED IMPROVEMENTS IN ALL DOMAINS OF THE PDQ-8. THE PROGRAM SHOULD BE EXPLORED FURTHER, AND LONGITUDINAL FOLLOW-UP COMPLETED. 2020 5 702 46 EFFECT OF HOME-BASED TAI CHI, YOGA OR CONVENTIONAL BALANCE EXERCISE ON FUNCTIONAL BALANCE AND MOBILITY AMONG PERSONS WITH IDIOPATHIC PARKINSON'S DISEASE: AN EXPERIMENTAL STUDY. BACKGROUND: INDIVIDUALS WITH PARKINSON'S DISEASE (PD) INVARIABLY EXPERIENCE FUNCTIONAL DECLINE IN A NUMBER OF MOTOR AND NON-MOTOR DOMAINS AFFECTING POSTURE, BALANCE AND GAIT. NUMEROUS CLINICAL STUDIES HAVE EXAMINED EFFECTS OF VARIOUS TYPES OF EXERCISE ON MOTOR AND NON-MOTOR PROBLEMS. BUT STILL MUCH GAP REMAINS IN OUR UNDERSTANDING OF VARIOUS THERAPIES AND THEIR EFFECT ON DELAYING OR SLOWING THE DOPAMINE NEURON DEGENERATION. RECENTLY, TAI CHI AND YOGA BOTH HAVE GAINED POPULARITY AS COMPLEMENTARY THERAPIES, SINCE BOTH HAVE COMPONENTS FOR MIND AND BODY CONTROL. OBJECTIVE: THE AIM OF THIS STUDY WAS TO DETERMINE WHETHER EIGHT WEEKS OF HOME-BASED TAI CHI OR YOGA WAS MORE EFFECTIVE THAN REGULAR BALANCE EXERCISES ON FUNCTIONAL BALANCE AND MOBILITY. METHODS: TWENTY-SEVEN INDIVIDUALS WITH IDIOPATHIC PD (MODIFIED HOEHN AND YAHR STAGES 2.5-3) WERE RANDOMLY ASSIGNED TO EITHER TAI CHI, YOGA OR CONVENTIONAL EXERCISE GROUP. ALL THE PARTICIPANTS WERE EVALUATED FOR FUNCTIONAL BALANCE AND MOBILITY USING BERG BALANCE SCALE, TIMED 10 M WALK TEST AND TIMED UP AND GO TEST BEFORE AND AFTER EIGHT WEEKS OF TRAINING. RESULTS: THE RESULTS WERE ANALYZED USING TWO-WAY MIXED ANOVA WHICH SHOWED THAT THERE WAS A SIGNIFICANT MAIN EFFECT FOR TIME AS F (1, 24) = 74.18, P = 0 . 000 , ETA P 2 = 0 . 76 FOR OVERALL BALANCE IN BERG BALANCE SCALE. THERE WAS ALSO SIGNIFICANT MAIN EFFECT OF TIME ON MOBILITY OVERALL AS F(1, 24) = 77 . 78 , P = 0 . 000 , ETA P 2 = 0 . 76 IN TIMED UP AND GO TEST AND F(1, 24) = 48 . 24 , P = 0 . 000 , ETA P 2 = 0 . 67 FOR 10 M WALK TEST. THERE WAS A SIGNIFICANT INTERACTION EFFECT FOR TIME X GROUP WITH F(2, 24) = 8 . 67 , P = 0 . 001 , ETA P 2 = 0 . 420 FOR BALANCE. WITH RESPECT TO MOBILITY, THE VALUES F(2, 24) = 5 . 92 , P = 0 . 008 , ETA P 2 = 0 . 330 IN TIMED UP AND GO TEST AND F(2, 24) = 10 . 40 , P = 0 . 001 , ETA P 2 = 0 . 464 IN 10 M WALK TEST SHOWED A SIGNIFICANT INTERACTION. BUT THERE WAS NO SIGNIFICANT MAIN EFFECT BETWEEN THE GROUPS FOR BOTH BALANCE AND MOBILITY. CONCLUSION: THE FINDINGS OF THIS STUDY SUGGEST THAT TAI CHI AS WELL AS YOGA ARE WELL ADHERED AND ARE ATTRACTIVE OPTIONS FOR A HOME-BASED SETTING. AS ANY FORM OF PHYSICAL ACTIVITY IS CONSIDERED BENEFICIAL FOR INDIVIDUALS WITH PD EITHER TAI CHI, YOGA OR CONVENTIONAL BALANCE EXERCISES COULD BE USED AS THERAPEUTIC INTERVENTION TO OPTIMIZE BALANCE AND MOBILITY. FURTHER STUDIES ARE NECESSARY TO UNDERSTAND THE MIND-BODY BENEFITS OF TAI CHI AND YOGA EITHER AS MULTICOMPONENT PHYSICAL ACTIVITIES OR AS INDIVIDUAL THERAPIES IN VARIOUS STAGES OF PD. 2020 6 456 36 CHANGES IN NONMOTOR SYMPTOMS FOLLOWING AN 8-WEEK YOGA INTERVENTION FOR PEOPLE WITH PARKINSON'S DISEASE. PARKINSON'S DISEASE (PD) IS A NEURODEGENERATIVE DISORDER MARKED BY PROGRESSIVE DEGENERATIVE MOTOR SYMPTOMS (E.G., TREMORS, IMPAIRED BALANCE AND GAIT) AND NONMOTOR SYMPTOMS (E.G., FATIGUE, SLEEP DISTURBANCES, PAIN) THAT CAN NEGATIVELY INFLUENCE HEALTH-RELATED QUALITY OF LIFE (HRQOL). PREVIOUS STUDIES HAVE SHOWN THAT YOGA FOR INDIVIDUALS WITH PD IMPROVES BALANCE, STRENGTH, AND MOBILITY. HOWEVER, LITTLE RESEARCH HAS BEEN CONDUCTED TO DETERMINE THE EFFECT OF YOGA ON NONMOTOR SYMPTOMS OF PD. THE PURPOSE OF THIS STUDY WAS TO EXAMINE CHANGES IN NONMOTOR SYMPTOMS AMONG INDIVIDUALS WITH PD FOLLOWING AN 8-WEEK YOGA INTERVENTION. DATA USED FOR ANALYSES WERE PART OF A LARGER STUDY THAT RESEARCHED IMPROVEMENTS IN MOTOR FUNCTION FOR INDIVIDUALS WITH PD. PARTICIPANTS (N = 27) WERE RANDOMLY ASSIGNED TO EXPERIMENTAL (N = 15) AND CONTROL (N = 12) GROUPS AND COMPLETED PRE- AND POSTINTERVENTION QUANTITATIVE MEASURES. WITHIN-GROUP IMPROVEMENTS WERE STATISTICALLY SIGNIFICANT FOR FATIGUE MEASURED BY THE PARKINSON'S FATIGUE SCALE, BALANCE CONFIDENCE MEASURED BY THE ACTIVITIES BALANCE CONFIDENCE SCALE, THE BELIEF IN ONE'S ABILITY TO MANAGE FALLS MEASURED BY THE FALLS MANAGEMENT SCALE, ACTIVITY CONSTRAINTS MEASURED BY THE ACTIVITIES CONSTRAINT QUESTIONNAIRE, AND PD-SPECIFIC QUALITY OF LIFE MEASURED BY THE PARKINSON'S DISEASE QUESTIONNAIRE-8. ACROSS-GROUP CHANGES WERE STATISTICALLY SIGNIFICANT FOR ACTIVITY CONSTRAINTS. FINDINGS INDICATE YOGA MAY BE AN EFFICACIOUS INTERVENTION FOR IMPROVING NONMOTOR SYMPTOMS AS WELL AS HRQOL FOR INDIVIDUALS WITH PD. 2019 7 965 50 EFFECTS OF A YOGA PROGRAM ON POSTURAL CONTROL, MOBILITY, AND GAIT SPEED IN COMMUNITY-LIVING OLDER ADULTS: A PILOT STUDY. OBJECTIVES: TO EXAMINE THE IMPACT OF AN 8-WEEK THERAPEUTIC YOGA PROGRAM ON POSTURAL CONTROL, MOBILITY, RISING FROM THE FLOOR, AND GAIT SPEED IN COMMUNITY-LIVING OLDER ADULTS. DESIGN: PRETEST/POSTTEST DESIGN WITH AN EXPERIMENTAL GROUP AND AN AGE-MATCHED CONTROL GROUP. CHANGES OVER TIME (PRETEST TO POSTTEST) WERE EVALUATED IN ALL OUTCOME MEASURES USING PAIRED T TESTS. SETTING: THE YOGA CLASS WAS PERFORMED AT A LOCAL CONTINUING CARE RETIREMENT COMMUNITY. ALL TESTING WAS PERFORMED AT THE SITE. CONTROL-SUBJECT PRETESTS AND POSTTESTS WERE PERFORMED AT A SECOND CONTINUING CARE RETIREMENT COMMUNITY. PARTICIPANTS: EIGHT RESEARCH PARTICIPANTS, ALL WOMEN, WITH A MEAN AGE OF 84 (4.6) YEARS, 8 CONTROL PARTICIPANTS, 5 WOMEN AND 3 MEN, AGED 81.3 (4.9) YEARS. RESEARCH PARTICIPANTS WERE NAIVE TO YOGA. INTERVENTIONS: AN 8-WEEK, 80-MINUTE, BIWEEKLY KRIPALU YOGA CLASS DESIGNED SPECIFICALLY FOR COMMUNITY-DWELLING OLDER ADULTS. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: POSTURAL CONTROL (BERG BALANCE SCALE), MOBILITY (TIME TO RISE FROM THE FLOOR TO STANDING, TIMED UP AND GO), GAIT (USUAL AND FAST GAIT SPEED), AND BALANCE CONFIDENCE (ACTIVITIES-SPECIFIC BALANCE SCALE). RESULTS: ALL SUBJECTS ATTENDED AT LEAST 10 OF THE 16 CLASSES (62% ATTENDANCE). POSTTEST DIFFERENCES WERE FOUND FOR YOGA PARTICIPANTS IN BALANCE SCORES (P < .003) AND FAST WALKING SPEED (P < .031). NO OTHER SIGNIFICANT CHANGES WERE NOTED. CONCLUSIONS: IMPROVEMENTS IN POSTURAL CONTROL AS MEASURED BY THE BERG BALANCE SCALE AND GAIT AS MEASURED BY FAST GAIT SPEED INDICATE THAT RESEARCH SUBJECTS BENEFITED FROM THE YOGA INTERVENTION. THE YOGA PROGRAM DESIGNED FOR THIS STUDY INCLUDED THE ACTIVITIES OF STANDING, SITTING, AND LYING ON THE FLOOR. THEREFORE, SUBJECTS PERFORM ACTIVITIES DURING YOGA THAT CAN IMPROVE POSTURAL CONTROL, MOBILITY, AND GAIT SPEED. 2011 8 2077 31 THE EFFECT OF CHAIR YOGA IN OLDER ADULTS WITH MODERATE AND SEVERE ALZHEIMER'S DISEASE. USING A QUASI-EXPERIMENTAL SINGLE-GROUP DESIGN, THIS STUDY EXAMINED THE FEASIBILITY OF OLDER ADULTS WITH ALZHEIMER'S DISEASE (AD)-TYPE DEMENTIA TO COMPLETE THE SIT 'N' FIT CHAIR YOGA PROGRAM. PHYSICAL FUNCTION OF PARTICIPANTS WHO COMPLETED THE PROGRAM WAS MEASURED. THE NINE OLDER ADULTS WITH AD (MEAN AGE = 83) PARTICIPATED IN THE 8-WEEK SIT 'N' FIT CHAIR YOGA PROGRAM. TO MEASURE PHYSICAL FUNCTION, THE SIX-MINUTE WALK TEST, THE GAIT SPEED TEST, AND THE BERG BALANCE SCALE WERE ADMINISTERED AT PRE-INTERVENTION, 4 WEEKS, 8 WEEKS, AND 1 MONTH AFTER PROGRAM COMPLETION. ALL PARTICIPANTS COMPLETED THE PROGRAM. POSITIVE CHANGES WERE SEEN ACROSS ALL PHYSICAL MEASURES. FURTHER STUDY, USING A LARGER SAMPLE AND INCLUDING A CONTROL GROUP, IS NEEDED TO FULLY DETERMINE THE EFFECT OF THE SIT 'N' FIT CHAIR YOGA PROGRAM ON OLDER ADULTS WITH MODERATE TO SEVERE AD. 2014 9 680 35 EFFECT OF A YOGA PROGRAMME ON AN INDIVIDUAL WITH PARKINSON'S DISEASE: A SINGLE-SUBJECT DESIGN. PURPOSE: TO INVESTIGATE THE EFFECT OF EIGHT WEEKLY YOGA SESSIONS ON BALANCE, MOBILITY AND REPORTED QUALITY OF LIFE OF AN INDIVIDUAL WITH PARKINSON'S DISEASE (PD). FURTHERMORE, TO TEST THE METHODOLOGY IN ORDER TO INFORM FUTURE RESEARCH. METHOD: A 69-YEAR-OLD FEMALE WITH AN 8-YEAR HISTORY OF PD (HOEHN AND YAHR RATING TWO) WAS SELECTED FOR THE STUDY, WHICH HAD A SINGLE SUBJECT ABA DESIGN. A 1-WEEK BASELINE WAS FOLLOWED BY AN 8-WEEK PERIOD OF WEEKLY 60 MIN YOGA CLASSES AND A FURTHER 5 WEEKS OF TREATMENT WITHDRAWAL. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES USED WERE BERG BALANCE SCALE (BBS), TIMED UP AND GO (TUG) AND THE PARKINSON'S DISEASE QUESTIONNAIRE-39 (PDQ-39); COLLECTED AT BASELINE, BEFORE, DURING AND AFTER THE INTERVENTION AND AT FOLLOW-UP. RESULTS: AN IMPROVEMENT WAS NOTED IN THE BBS AND TUG DURING THE INTERVENTION PHASE; ALTHOUGH THESE CHANGES DID NOT APPEAR TO BE CLINICALLY SIGNIFICANT. NO CHANGE IN QUALITY OF LIFE AS MEASURED BY THE PDQ-39 WAS NOTED. CONCLUSIONS: THE OBJECTIVE IMPROVEMENTS IN FUNCTIONAL ACTIVITIES DURING THE INTERVENTION PERIOD WERE NOT CLINICALLY SIGNIFICANT. SUBJECTIVELY, THE PARTICIPANT GAINED MUCH ENJOYMENT AND RELAXATION FROM THE YOGA CLASSES. THIS STUDY JUSTIFIES THE NEED FOR FURTHER STUDIES USING A LARGER SAMPLE SIZE. ADDITIONALLY, IT WILL INFORM THE METHODOLOGICAL DESIGN. 2011 10 1113 52 EFFICACY OF A BIOMECHANICALLY-BASED YOGA EXERCISE PROGRAM IN KNEE OSTEOARTHRITIS: A RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED TRIAL. OBJECTIVE: CERTAIN EXERCISES COULD OVERLOAD THE OSTEOARTHRITIC KNEE. WE DEVELOPED AN EXERCISE PROGRAM FROM YOGA POSTURES WITH A MINIMAL KNEE ADDUCTION MOMENT FOR KNEE OSTEOARTHRITIS. THE PURPOSE WAS TO COMPARE THE EFFECTIVENESS OF THIS BIOMECHANICALLY-BASED YOGA EXERCISE (YE), WITH TRADITIONAL EXERCISE (TE), AND A NO-EXERCISE ATTENTION-EQUIVALENT CONTROL (NE) FOR IMPROVING PAIN, SELF-REPORTED PHYSICAL FUNCTION AND MOBILITY PERFORMANCE IN WOMEN WITH KNEE OSTEOARTHRITIS. DESIGN: SINGLE-BLIND, THREE-ARM RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED TRIAL. SETTING: COMMUNITY IN SOUTHWESTERN ONTARIO, CANADA. PARTICIPANTS: A CONVENIENCE SAMPLE OF 31 WOMEN WITH SYMPTOMATIC KNEE OSTEOARTHRITIS WAS RECRUITED THROUGH RHEUMATOLOGY, ORTHOPAEDIC AND PHYSIOTHERAPY CLINICS, NEWSPAPERS AND WORD-OF-MOUTH. INTERVENTIONS: PARTICIPANTS WERE STRATIFIED BY DISEASE SEVERITY AND RANDOMLY ALLOCATED TO ONE OF THREE 12-WEEK, SUPERVISED INTERVENTIONS. YE INCLUDED BIOMECHANICALLY-BASED YOGA EXERCISES; TE INCLUDED TRADITIONAL LEG STRENGTHENING ON MACHINES; AND NE INCLUDED MEDITATION WITH NO EXERCISE. PARTICIPANTS WERE ASKED TO ATTEND THREE 1-HOUR GROUP CLASSES/SESSIONS EACH WEEK. MEASUREMENTS: PRIMARY OUTCOMES WERE PAIN, SELF-REPORTED PHYSICAL FUNCTION AND MOBILITY PERFORMANCE. SECONDARY OUTCOMES WERE KNEE STRENGTH, DEPRESSION, AND HEALTH-RELATED QUALITY OF LIFE. ALL WERE ASSESSED BY A BLINDED ASSESSOR AT BASELINE AND IMMEDIATELY FOLLOWING THE INTERVENTION. RESULTS: THE YE GROUP DEMONSTRATED GREATER IMPROVEMENTS IN KOOS PAIN (MEAN DIFFERENCE OF 22.9 [95% CI, 6.9 TO 38.8; P = 0.003]), INTERMITTENT PAIN (MEAN DIFFERENCE OF -19.6 [95% CI, -34.8 TO -4.4; P = 0.009]) AND SELF-REPORTED PHYSICAL FUNCTION (MEAN DIFFERENCE OF 17.2 [95% CI, 5.2 TO 29.2; P = 0.003]) COMPARED TO NE. IMPROVEMENTS IN THESE OUTCOMES WERE SIMILAR BETWEEN YE AND TE. HOWEVER, TE DEMONSTRATED A GREATER IMPROVEMENT IN KNEE FLEXOR STRENGTH COMPARED TO YE (MEAN DIFFERENCE OF 0.1 [95% CI, 0.1 TO 0.2]. IMPROVEMENTS FROM BASELINE TO FOLLOW-UP WERE PRESENT IN QUALITY OF LIFE SCORE FOR YE AND KNEE FLEXOR STRENGTH FOR TE, WHILE BOTH ALSO DEMONSTRATED IMPROVEMENTS IN MOBILITY. NO IMPROVEMENT IN ANY OUTCOME WAS PRESENT IN NE. CONCLUSIONS: THE BIOMECHANICALLY-BASED YOGA EXERCISE PROGRAM PRODUCED CLINICALLY MEANINGFUL IMPROVEMENTS IN PAIN, SELF-REPORTED PHYSICAL FUNCTION AND MOBILITY IN WOMEN WITH CLINICAL KNEE OA COMPARED TO NO EXERCISE. WHILE NOT STATISTICALLY SIGNIFICANT, IMPROVEMENTS IN THESE OUTCOMES WERE LARGER THAN THOSE ELICITED FROM THE TRADITIONAL EXERCISE-BASED PROGRAM. THOUGH THIS MAY SUGGEST THAT THE YOGA PROGRAM MAY BE MORE EFFICACIOUS FOR KNEE OA, FUTURE RESEARCH STUDYING A LARGER SAMPLE IS REQUIRED. TRIAL REGISTRATION: CLINICALTRIALS.GOV (NCT02370667). 2018 11 1942 44 SAFETY AND FEASIBILITY OF MODIFIED CHAIR-YOGA ON FUNCTIONAL OUTCOME AMONG ELDERLY AT RISK FOR FALLS. FALLS ARE AMONG THE MOST COMMON PROBLEMS AFFECTING OLDER ADULTS. AT LEAST 50% OF THOSE OVER THE AGE OF 80 FALL ANNUALLY. THE GOAL OF THIS PILOT STUDY WAS TO ASSESS THE SAFETY AND FEASIBILITY OF STRUCTURED YOGA IN AN ELDERLY POPULATION WITH FALL RISK. SENIORS AT RISK FOR FALLS WERE IDENTIFIED AND ENROLLED IN A SINGLE ARM PILOT TRIAL. A CHAIR BASED YOGA PROGRAM WAS PROVIDED TWICE A WEEK FOR 8 WEEKS. THE PROGRAM WAS DESIGNED FROM PREVIOUSLY PUBLISHED PILOT DATA. A BATTERY OF VALIDATED INSTRUMENTS WAS ADMINISTERED AT BASELINE AND WEEK EIGHT AND WAS USED TO IDENTIFY WHICH INSTRUMENTS MAY BE SENSITIVE TO CHANGE AS A RESULT OF A YOGA PROGRAM. AMONG SIXTEEN SENIORS (MEDIAN AGE OF 88) WITH A PREVIOUS HISTORY OF FALLS, 87% PROVIDED DATA FOR ASSESSMENT AT THE END OF THE INTERVENTION. TWO PATIENTS WITHDREW, ONE DUE TO A FALL OUTSIDE THE INSTITUTION AND THE OTHER DUE TO LACK OF TIME AND INTEREST. THERE WERE NO ADVERSE EVENTS DURING THE YOGA SESSIONS. PAIRED-T TESTS COMPARED PRE-POST CHANGES AND GAINS WERE NOTED IN FEAR OF FALLING (5.27 TO 2.60; P = 0.029) AND SPPB SIT TO STAND SUBSCALE (0.31 TO 1.00; P =.022). IMPROVED TRENDS WERE NOTED IN ANXIETY AND THE TIMED UP AND GO ASSESSMENTS. WE FOUND THE MODIFIED CHAIR-YOGA PROGRAM IS SAFE AND RECRUITMENT IS FEASIBLE. OUR DATA SUGGESTS THAT YOGA MAY BE BENEFICIAL IN IMPROVING MOBILITY AND REDUCING FEAR OF FALLING WHICH WARRANTS ADDITIONAL RESEARCH VIA RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED TRIAL. 2012 12 2859 48 YOGA-BASED EXERCISE IMPROVES BALANCE AND MOBILITY IN PEOPLE AGED 60 AND OVER: A SYSTEMATIC REVIEW AND META-ANALYSIS. OBJECTIVE: ONE-THIRD OF COMMUNITY-DWELLING OLDER ADULTS FALL ANNUALLY. EXERCISE THAT CHALLENGES BALANCE IS PROVEN TO PREVENT FALLS. WE CONDUCTED A SYSTEMATIC REVIEW WITH META-ANALYSIS TO DETERMINE THE IMPACT OF YOGA-BASED EXERCISE ON BALANCE AND PHYSICAL MOBILITY IN PEOPLE AGED 60+ YEARS. METHODS: SEARCHES FOR RELEVANT TRIALS WERE CONDUCTED ON THE FOLLOWING ELECTRONIC DATABASES: MEDLINE, EMBASE, COCHRANE CENTRAL REGISTER OF CONTROLLED TRIALS, CINAHL, ALLIED AND COMPLEMENTARY MEDICINE DATABASE AND THE PHYSIOTHERAPY EVIDENCE DATABASE (PEDRO) FROM INCEPTION TO FEBRUARY 2015. TRIALS WERE INCLUDED IF THEY EVALUATED THE EFFECT OF PHYSICAL YOGA (EXCLUDING MEDITATION AND BREATHING EXERCISES ALONE) ON BALANCE IN PEOPLE AGED 60+ YEARS. WE EXTRACTED DATA ON BALANCE AND THE SECONDARY OUTCOME OF PHYSICAL MOBILITY. STANDARDISED MEAN DIFFERENCES AND 95% CONFIDENCE INTERVALS (CI) WERE CALCULATED USING RANDOM-EFFECTS MODELS. METHODOLOGICAL QUALITY OF TRIALS WAS ASSESSED USING THE 10-POINT PHYSIOTHERAPY EVIDENCE DATABASE (PEDRO) SCALE. RESULTS: SIX TRIALS OF RELATIVELY HIGH METHODOLOGICAL QUALITY, TOTALLING 307 PARTICIPANTS, WERE IDENTIFIED AND HAD DATA THAT COULD BE INCLUDED IN A META-ANALYSIS. OVERALL, YOGA INTERVENTIONS HAD A SMALL EFFECT ON BALANCE PERFORMANCE (HEDGES' G = 0.40, 95% CI 0.15-0.65, 6 TRIALS) AND A MEDIUM EFFECT ON PHYSICAL MOBILITY (HEDGES' G = 0.50, 95% CI 0.06-0.95, 3 TRIALS). CONCLUSION: YOGA INTERVENTIONS RESULTED IN SMALL IMPROVEMENTS IN BALANCE AND MEDIUM IMPROVEMENTS IN PHYSICAL MOBILITY IN PEOPLE AGED 60+ YEARS. FURTHER RESEARCH IS REQUIRED TO DETERMINE WHETHER YOGA-RELATED IMPROVEMENTS IN BALANCE AND MOBILITY TRANSLATE TO PREVENTION OF FALLS IN OLDER PEOPLE. PROSPERO REGISTRATION NUMBER CRD42015015872. 2016 13 537 49 COMPARISONS OF TAI CHI AND IYENGAR YOGA INTERVENTION EFFECTS ON MUSCLE STRENGTH, BALANCE, AND CONFIDENCE IN BALANCE. BACKGROUND: THE AIM OF THE STUDY IS TO COMPARE A 16-WEEK TAI CHI AND IYENGAR YOGA PROGRAM EFFECTS ON MUSCLE STRENGTH, STATIC AND DYNAMIC BALANCE, AND BALANCE CONFIDENCE IN ELDERLY PEOPLE. METHODS: A TOTAL OF 48 PARTICIPANTS (>/=60 YEARS OLD) WITHOUT MOBILITY-IMPAIRING NEUROLOGICAL DISEASE, DEMENTIA, CARDIOVASCULAR DISEASE/SYMPTOMS DURING MODERATE EXERCISE, POORLY CONTROLLED HYPERTENSION, OR BALANCE-IMPAIRING DRUG USE. PARTICIPANTS WERE DIVIDED INTO A TAI CHI GROUP, AN IYENGAR YOGA GROUP, AND A CONTROL GROUP (EIGHT MALES AND EIGHT FEMALES PER GROUP), USING A RESTRICTED RANDOMIZATION SCHEME GENERATED BY SOFTWARE. WHILE THE FORMER TWO UNDERTOOK 16-WEEK EXERCISE PROGRAMS, THE CONTROL GROUP RECEIVED GENERAL EDUCATION. MAXIMUM CONCENTRIC STRENGTH WAS MEASURED WITH AN ISOKINETIC DYNAMOMETER. THE ONE-LEGGED STAND WITH EYES CLOSED, "8 FEET UP AND GO," AND ACTIVITIES-SPECIFIC BALANCE CONFIDENCE (ABC) SCALE WERE USED TO ASSESS STATIC BALANCE, DYNAMIC BALANCE, AND BALANCE CONFIDENCE IN DAILY ACTIVITIES, RESPECTIVELY. RESULTS: BOTH PROGRAMS IMPROVED ALL MEASURES SIGNIFICANTLY WITH TAI CHI BEING MORE EFFECTIVE FOR INCREASING KNEE FL EXOR STRENGTH (P=0.045) AND EXTENSOR STRENGTH (P=0.032) AND ABC SCORE (P=0.034); IYENGAR YOGA WAS MORE EFFECTIVE FOR IMPROVING STATIC BALANCE (P=0.014) AND DYNAMIC BALANCE (P=0.025; ALL P VALUES HERE VS. THE OTHER PROGRAM). CONCLUSIONS: TAI CHI AND IYENGAR YOGA CAN IMPROVE STRENGTH, BALANCE, AND BALANCE CONFIDENCE AMONG OLDER PEOPLE. BOTH ARE SUITABLE EXERCISE CHOICES FOR OLDER ADULTS. 2021 14 1276 32 FUNCTIONAL IMPROVEMENTS IN PARKINSON'S DISEASE FOLLOWING A RANDOMIZED TRIAL OF YOGA. INDIVIDUALS WITH PARKINSON'S DISEASE (PD) EXPERIENCE SIGNIFICANT LIMITATIONS IN MOTOR FUNCTION, FUNCTIONAL GAIT, POSTURAL STABILITY, AND BALANCE. THESE LIMITATIONS OFTEN LEAD TO HIGHER INCIDENCES OF FALLS, WHICH HAVE SIGNIFICANT COMPLICATIONS FOR INDIVIDUALS WITH PD. YOGA MAY IMPROVE THESE FUNCTIONAL DEFICITS IN INDIVIDUALS WITH PD. THE OBJECTIVE OF THIS STUDY WAS TO DETERMINE CHANGES IN MOTOR FUNCTION, FUNCTIONAL GAIT, POSTURAL STABILITY, AND BALANCE CONTROL FOR COMMUNITY DWELLING INDIVIDUALS WITH PD. THIS RANDOMIZED, WAIT-LIST CONTROLLED PILOT STUDY EXAMINED THE INFLUENCE OF AN 8-WEEK YOGA INTERVENTION FOR PEOPLE WITH PD WHO MET THE FOLLOWING INCLUSION CRITERIA: ENDORSING A FEAR OF FALLING, BEING ABLE TO SPEAK ENGLISH, SCORING 4/6 ON THE MINIMENTAL STATE EXAM, AND BEING WILLING TO ATTEND THE INTERVENTION TWICE WEEKLY FOR 8-WEEKS. PARTICIPANTS IN THE YOGA GROUP (N=15) EXPERIENCED IMPROVEMENTS IN MOTOR FUNCTION, POSTURAL STABILITY, FUNCTIONAL GAIT, AND FREEZING GAIT, AS WELL AS REDUCTIONS IN FALL RISK. PARTICIPANTS IN THE WAIT-LIST CONTROL (N=12) ALSO SIGNIFICANTLY IMPROVED IN POSTURAL STABILITY, ALTHOUGH THEIR FALL RISK WAS NOT REDUCED. INDIVIDUALS IN THE YOGA GROUP SIGNIFICANTLY REDUCED THEIR FALL RISK. AN 8-WEEK YOGA INTERVENTION MAY REDUCE FALL RISK AND IMPROVE POSTURAL STABILITY, AND FUNCTIONAL AND FREEZING GAIT IN INDIVIDUALS WITH PD. THIS CLINICAL TRIAL IS REGISTERED AS PROTOCOL RECORD PRO00041068 IN CLINICALTRIALS.GOV. 2018 15 12 49 "MERGING YOGA AND OCCUPATIONAL THERAPY (MY-OT): A FEASIBILITY AND PILOT STUDY". OBJECTIVE: TO EXAMINE THE FEASIBILITY AND BENEFITS OF THE MERGING YOGA AND OCCUPATIONAL THERAPY (MY-OT) INTERVENTION. DESIGN: THIS IS THE PRIMARY ANALYSIS OF A NON-CONTROLLED PRETEST-POSTTEST PILOT STUDY TO UNDERSTAND THE FEASIBILITY AND IMPACT OF MY-OT ON BALANCE, BALANCE SELF-EFFICACY, AND FALL RISK FACTOR MANAGEMENT IN PEOPLE WITH CHRONIC STROKE. SETTING: UNIVERSITY RESEARCH LABORATORY. PARTICIPANTS: PEOPLE WITH CHRONIC STROKE WERE INCLUDED IN THE STUDY IF THEY: HAD SUSTAINED A FALL OR HAD FEAR OF FALLING, WERE ABLE TO STAND, AND HAND IMPAIRED BALANCE AND WERE AT RISK FOR FALLS (