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The Effects of Yoga on Patients with Mild Cognitive Impairment and Dementia: A Scoping Review.

The American journal of geriatric psychiatry : official journal of the American Association for Geriatric Psychiatry
February 1, 2019
Gretchen A Brenes et al. (6 authors)
Journal ArticleResearch Support, N.I.H., ExtramuralResearch Support, Non-U.S. Gov'tScoping ReviewHuman Study
Study Details

Study Goal

The researchers aimed to examine the impact of yoga on cognitive functioning in adults with mild cognitive impairment (MCI) and dementia.

Results Summary

Yoga may have beneficial effects on cognitive functioning, particularly attention and verbal memory, potentially through improved sleep, mood, and neural connectivity. However, limitations include variability in intervention details and underlying etiologies of cognitive impairment.

Population

Adults with mild cognitive impairment (MCI) or dementia.

Effective Dosage

Not specified

Duration

Not specified

Interactions

None mentioned

Extracted Claims (6)
InterventionDirectionEndpointPopulationDosageImpactClaim #
yoga
increase
cognitive functioning
persons with MCI or dementia
-
may have beneficial effects on
#1
yoga
increase
attention
persons with MCI or dementia
-
may have beneficial effects on
#2
yoga
increase
verbal memory
persons with MCI or dementia
-
may have beneficial effects on
#3
yoga
increase
sleep
persons with MCI or dementia
-
may affect cognitive functioning through improved
#4
yoga
increase
mood
persons with MCI or dementia
-
may affect cognitive functioning through improved
#5
yoga
increase
neural connectivity
persons with MCI or dementia
-
may affect cognitive functioning through improved
#6
Abstract

Yoga is an ancient mind body practice. Although yoga has been used as a complementary health approach for enhancing wellness and addressing a variety of health issues, little is known about the impact of yoga on cognitive functioning in adults with mild cognitive impairment (MCI) and dementia. We conducted a literature review to examine the impact of yoga on persons with MCI and dementia. Eight studies were identified that reported on yoga as either the primary intervention or one component of a multi-component intervention in samples of persons with MCI or dementia. Results suggest that yoga may have beneficial effects on cognitive functioning, particularly on attention and verbal memory. Further, yoga may affect cognitive functioning through improved sleep, mood, and neural connectivity. There are a number of limitations of the existing studies, including a lack of intervention details, as well as variability in the frequency/duration and components of the yoga interventions. A further complicating issue is the role of various underlying etiologies of cognitive impairment. Despite these limitations, providers may consider recommending yoga to persons with MCI or dementia as a safe and potentially beneficial complementary health approach.

Medical Subject Headings (MeSH)
AgingAnimalsCognitive DysfunctionDementiaHumansMindfulnessOutcome Assessment, Health CareYoga
Study Links
Quality Scores
Safety85
Efficacy70/10
Quality65/10
Citation Metrics
Total Citations36
Citations/Year6.0
Relative Citation Ratio2.65
NIH Percentile82.2%
Research Impact Scores
APT Score0.75
Weight Score1.05
Normalized Score0.75
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