Table 1.
Characteristics of included systematic reviews.
| Review | Population | Type of yoga interventions | Type of comparisons | Outcomes | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Health condition (ICPC-2 class) |
No. of primary studies incl. in SR | No. of participants | ||||
| Aljasir et al., 2010 [8] | Type 2 diabetes (T90) |
5 | 362 | Mixed yoga and yoga with dietary and herbal intake | No data | Blood glucose levels, lipid profile, body mass index (BMI), and diabetes-related complication |
|
| ||||||
| Anderson and Taylor, 2011 [9] | Metabolic syndromes (T99) |
2 | 125 | Restorative yoga | Waitlist, usual care | Body mass index (BMI), waist circumference, blood pressure, insulin sensitivity, blood glucose, blood lipids (HDL, LDL), perceived stress (SF-36), and food frequency |
|
| ||||||
| Büssing et al., 2012 [10] | Pain symptoms (A1; N1; L) |
16 | 937 | Mixed yoga (LAYT, Viniyoga, Raj, and unspecified others) | Waitlist, usual care, exercise, medication, and lecture | Effect size of pain using standardized measurements (i.e., VAS, MPQ, and CMDQ) |
|
| ||||||
| Cabral et al., 2011 [11] | Psychiatric disorders (P99) |
10 | 343 | Hatha, Iyengar, Kriya, Sahaja, Integrated, Meditation, and Siddha Samadhi | No data | Major psychiatric disorders (schizophrenia, depression, anxiety, and PTSD) |
|
| ||||||
| Dickinson et al., 2008 [12] | Hypertensive (K86) |
2 | 63 | Yoga and meditation | No comparison group | Systolic and diastolic blood pressure |
|
| ||||||
| Gerritsen et al., 2002 [13] | Carpal tunnel syndrome (N93) |
1 | 42 | 11 yoga postures | Usual care | Pain and sleep disturbance scores |
|
| ||||||
| Haaz and Bartlett, 2011 [14] | Arthritis (L91) |
10 | 243 | Iyngar and Kundalini yoga | Waitlist, usual care, and no comparison group | Disease activity score (DAS), joint inflammation, functional ability (strength, balance, flexibility, and mobility), psychosocial (arthritis impact measurement scale 2 (AIMS2), HRQL (SF-36), Beck Depression Index (BDI)), and medication usage |
|
| ||||||
| Heiwe and Jacobson, 2011 [15] | Chronic kidney disease (U14) |
1 | 40 | Modified yoga including balancing, strengthening, and breathing techniques | Exercise | Muscular strength, grip strength, and blood lipids (triglyceride, total cholesterol, and HDL cholesterol) |
|
| ||||||
| Innes and Vincent, 2007 [16] | Women with menopause (X11) |
7 | 408 | Hatha, Iyengar, Sahaja, Hot, Yoga Awareness Program (Kripalu), and Integrated Approach to Yoga Therapy | Waitlist, exercise, and no comparison group | Overall menopausal symptoms, vasomotor menopausal symptoms, and sleep disturbance |
|
| ||||||
| Innes et al., 2010 [17] | Type 2 diabetes (T90) |
25 | 1828 | Various components including asana, Kriya, or cleansing exercises, meditation, pranayama, and meditation | Waitlist, usual care, exercise, and book/pamphlet | Insulin resistance (fasting glucose, postprandial glucose, fructosamine, fasting insulin, and fasting glycated hemoglobin), blood lipid profile (cholesterol, triglycerides, low/high-density lipoprotein, very LDL, cholesterol/HDL ratio, and LDL/HDL ratio), anthropometric measures (BMI, body weight, and body composition), blood pressure (systolic/diastolic), and medical usage |
|
| ||||||
| Kirkwood et al., 2005 [18] | Anxiety disorders (P74) |
8 | 370 | Kundalini | Sham yoga, medication, book/pamphlet, and tablet placebo | Anxiety scales and checklists (YBOCS, HAS, ACL, Inst. for personality and ability testing) |
|
| ||||||
| Krisanaprakornkit et al., 2006 [19] | Anxiety disorders (P74) |
2 | 76 | Kundalini | Relaxation response/mindful meditation | Anxiety rating scale |
|
| ||||||
| Langhorst et al., 2012 [20] | Women with fibromyalgia syndrome (A99) |
2 | 93 | Yoga of Awareness Program | Waitlist, usual care | Pain, sleep, fatigue, depression (VAS), and health-related quality of life (FIQ—fibromyalgia impact questionnaire) |
|
| ||||||
| Lee et al., 2009 [21] | Menopausal women (X2) |
7 | 470 | Iyengar, restorative, and integrated yoga (!AYT) | Waitlist, exercise | Psychological, somatic, vasomotor, and total symptoms of menopause |
|
| ||||||
| Lin et al., 2011 [22] | Psychological Health (P1; P3; P29) |
10 | 788 | Hatha, restorative, integrated, mind-body stress reduction, and Tibetan yoga | No data | Psychological health rating (anxiety, depression, distress, and stress), and quality of life and physical measures (self-reported health, fatigue) |
|
| ||||||
| Mahendira and Towheed, 2009 [23] | Osteoarthritis (L91) | 1 | No data | Unspecified yoga | Waitlist with wrist splint | Efficacy of treatment |
|
| ||||||
| Marc et al., 2011 [24] | Anxiety in pregnant women (P73; W78) |
1 | 34 | Mindfulness interventions | Waitlist | Perceived stress (perceived stress scale), depression, anxiety, positive/negative affect, and affect regulation |
|
| ||||||
| Morone and Greco, 2007 [25] | Pain symptoms (A1) |
4 | 188 | Yoga, relaxation, and education | Waitlist, book/pamphlet | Pain (WOMAC, RDS, joint tenderness, and visual analogue scale), physical function |
|
| ||||||
| Muller et al., 2004 [26] | Carpal tunnel syndrome (N93) |
1 | 46 | Unspecified yoga | Usual care (splint) | Pain and grip strength |
|
| ||||||
| Pilkington et al., 2005 [27] | Depression (P76) |
5 | 183 | Iyengar, Kriya, and Broota's relaxation technique (BRT) | Waitlist, sham yoga, exercise, medication, and electroconvulsive therapy | Depression rating scale |
|
| ||||||
|
Posadzki et al.,
2011 [28] |
Pain symptoms (A1) |
7 | 403 | Hatha, Iyengar, Viniyoga, and 2 others unspecified | Waitlist, usual care, exercise, book/pamphlet | Pain, disability, depression rating scales, and medication usage |
|
| ||||||
| Ram et al., 2003 [29] | Asthmatic (R96) |
3 | 147 | Breathing exercise, meditation, postures, deep muscle relaxation, and chanting | Waitlist, exercise, and no data for some groups | Asthma symptoms (peak expiratory flow rates, exacerbations per week, and asthma symptom scores) |
|
| ||||||
| Ramaratnam and Sridharan, 2000 [30] | Epileptic (N88) |
2 | 50 | Sahaja, Pranayama, Dhyana, Yama, and Niyama | Sham yoga, talk therapy | Seizure frequency and duration |
|
| ||||||
| Slade and Keating, 2007 [31] | Low back pain (L33) |
2 | 145 | Iyengar, Viniyoga | Exercise, lecture, and book/pamphlet | Pain and function rating scores |
|
| ||||||
| Smith and Pukall, 2009 [32] | Pain/relaxation in labour (P01; W78) |
2 | 281 | Yoga program with educational activities | Usual care, exercise, music, and other yoga groups | Pain intensity, satisfaction with pain relief, satisfaction with childbirth, Apgar score, use of pharmacological pain relief, length of active labour, and augmentation in labour |
|
| ||||||
| Smith et al., 2011 [33] | Anxiety in cancer patients (P29; A79) |
10 | 892 | Hatha, Iyengar, Restorative, Yoga of Awareness, Tibetan, and 4 others unspecified | Waitlist, exercise, and talk therapy | Anxiety, stress, depression, fatigue, sleep quality, spiritual wellbeing, and quality of life scales |
Italics: systematic reviews including only yoga interventions.
Normal: systematic reviews including yoga interventions plus other interventions.