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Determining the potential benefits of yoga in chronic stroke care: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

Topics in stroke rehabilitation
May 1, 2017
Tharshanah Thayabaranathan et al. (8 authors)
Journal ArticleMeta-AnalysisReviewSystematic ReviewHuman Study
Study Details

Study Goal

The researchers aimed to systematically review and meta-analyze randomized controlled trials (RCTs) to evaluate the potential benefits of yoga, a mindfulness-based intervention, for chronic stroke survivors.

Results Summary

Yoga showed benefits in reducing state anxiety and depression, with modest but statistically significant improvements. Non-significant improvements were noted for balance, trait anxiety, and overall quality of life.

Population

Chronic survivors of stroke

Effective Dosage

Not specified

Duration

Not specified

Interactions

None mentioned

Extracted Claims (5)
InterventionDirectionEndpointPopulationDosageImpactClaim #
Yoga
decrease
state anxiety symptoms
chronic survivors of stroke
mean differences for state anxiety 6.05, 95% CI:-0.02 to 12.12; p = 0.05
beneficial in reducing
#1
Yoga
decrease
depression
chronic survivors of stroke
standardized mean differences for depression: 0.50, 95% CI:-0.01 to 1.02; p = 0.05
beneficial in reducing
#2
Yoga
increase
balance
chronic survivors of stroke
nonsignificant improvements
Consistent but nonsignificant improvements were demonstrated for
#3
Yoga
decrease
trait anxiety
chronic survivors of stroke
nonsignificant improvements
Consistent but nonsignificant improvements were demonstrated for
#4
Yoga
increase
overall quality of life
chronic survivors of stroke
nonsignificant improvements
Consistent but nonsignificant improvements were demonstrated for
#5
Abstract

BACKGROUND: Survivors of stroke have long-term physical and psychological consequences that impact their quality of life. Few interventions are available in the community to address these problems. Yoga, a type of mindfulness-based intervention, is shown to be effective in people with other chronic illnesses and may have the potential to address many of the problems reported by survivors of stroke. OBJECTIVES: To date only narrative reviews have been published. We sought to perform, the first systematic review with meta-analyses of randomized controlled trials (RCTs) that investigated yoga for its potential benefit for chronic survivors of stroke. METHODS: Ovid Medline, CINHAL plus, AMED, PubMed, PsychINFO, PeDro, Cochrane database, Sport Discuss, and Google Scholar were searched for papers published between January 1950 and August 2016. Reference lists of included papers, review articles and OpenGrey for Grey literature were also searched. We used a modified Cochrane tool to evaluate risk of bias. The methodological quality of RCTs was assessed using the GRADE approach, results were collated, and random effects meta-analyses performed where appropriate. RESULTS: The search yielded five eligible papers from four RCTs with small sample sizes (n = 17-47). Quality of RCTs was rated as low to moderate. Yoga is beneficial in reducing state anxiety symptoms and depression in the intervention group compared to the control group (mean differences for state anxiety 6.05, 95% CI:-0.02 to 12.12; p = 0.05 and standardized mean differences for depression: 0.50, 95% CI:-0.01 to 1.02; p = 0.05). Consistent but nonsignificant improvements were demonstrated for balance, trait anxiety, and overall quality of life. CONCLUSIONS: Yoga may be effective for ameliorating some of the long-term consequences of stroke. Large well-designed RCTs are needed to confirm these findings.

Medical Subject Headings (MeSH)
Chronic DiseaseHumansStrokeStroke RehabilitationYoga
Study Links
Quality Scores
SafetyNot Assessed
Efficacy65/10
Quality70/10
Citation Metrics
Total Citations23
Citations/Year2.9
Relative Citation Ratio1.56
NIH Percentile66.4%
Research Impact Scores
APT Score0.75
Weight Score1.86
Normalized Score0.60
Related Supplements
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