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. 2013:2013:945895.
doi: 10.1155/2013/945895. Epub 2013 May 16.

Overview of systematic reviews: yoga as a therapeutic intervention for adults with acute and chronic health conditions

Marcy C McCall  1 , Alison Ward, Nia W Roberts, Carl Heneghan
Affiliations

Overview of systematic reviews: yoga as a therapeutic intervention for adults with acute and chronic health conditions

Marcy C McCall et al. Evid Based Complement Alternat Med. 2013.

Abstract

Objectives. Overview the quality, direction, and characteristics of yoga interventions for treatment of acute and chronic health conditions in adult populations. Methods. We searched for systematic reviews in 10 online databases, bibliographic references, and hand-searches in yoga-related journals. Included reviews satisfy Oxman criteria and specify yoga as a primary intervention in one or more randomized controlled trials for treatment in adults. The AMSTAR tool and GRADE approach evaluated the methodological quality of reviews and quality of evidence. Results. We identified 2202 titles, of which 41 full-text articles were assessed for eligibility and 26 systematic reviews satisfied inclusion criteria. Thirteen systematic reviews include quantitative data and six papers include meta-analysis. The quality of evidence is generally low. Sixteen different types of health conditions are included. Eleven reviews show tendency towards positive effects of yoga intervention, 15 reviews report unclear results, and no, reviews report adverse effects of yoga. Yoga appears most effective for reducing symptoms in anxiety, depression, and pain. Conclusion. Although the quality of systematic reviews is high, the quality of supporting evidence is low. Significant heterogeneity and variability in reporting interventions by type of yoga, settings, and population characteristics limit the generalizability of results.

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Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Flowchart of systematic review selection [5].
Figure 2
Figure 2
Effect size of yoga in comparison to study size.
Box 1
Box 1
The AMSTAR tool criteria.
Box 2
Box 2
Types of yoga intervention.
Box 3
Box 3
Summary of anxiety outcome measures.
Box 4
Box 4
Summary of outcome measures for pain.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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