Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2020 Aug:40:101172.
doi: 10.1016/j.ctcp.2020.101172. Epub 2020 Apr 8.

Yoga improves balance, mobility, and perceived occupational performance in adults with chronic brain injury: A preliminary investigation

J A Stephens  1 , M Van Puymbroeck  2 , P L Sample  3 , A A Schmid  4
Affiliations

Yoga improves balance, mobility, and perceived occupational performance in adults with chronic brain injury: A preliminary investigation

J A Stephens et al. Complement Ther Clin Pract. 2020 Aug.

Abstract

Background and purpose: This was a preliminary investigation to investigate potential benefits of group yoga, as past work has indicated that one-on-one yoga can improve functional deficits in adults with brain injury.

Materials and methods: Participants served as their own controls. Nine participants with chronic brain injury were recruited, and seven (four female) completed the study. Performance measures of balance and mobility and self-reported measures of balance confidence, pain, and occupational performance and satisfaction were used. Data were collected 3 times: baseline (study onset), pre-yoga (after an 8-week no-contact period), and post-yoga (after 8 weeks of yoga). Group yoga was led by a yoga instructor/occupational therapist, and sessions lasted 1 h and occurred twice a week.

Results: No participants withdrew due to adverse effects from yoga. There were no significant changes between baseline and pre-yoga. Significant improvement was observed post-yoga in balance (p = 0.05), mobility (p = 0.03), and self-reported occupational performance (p = 0.04).

Conclusion: We observed significant improvements in balance, mobility, and self-reported occupational performance in adults with chronic brain injury.

Keywords: Balance; Brain injury; Chronic; Complementary therapies; Mobility; Yoga.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1.
Figure 1.
A) In 7 adults with chronic brain injury, 8 weeks of group yoga significantly improved balance, as measured by the Berg Balance Scale. B) Illustration of individual participants: 6 of the 7 pilot participants had improved balance following 8 weeks of group yoga. Note: Dashed line is located at balance score threshold of ≤ 46, where individuals have balance impairment and are at risk for falls. Error bars represent standard error. * represents p <.05.
Figure 2.
Figure 2.
A) In 7 adults with chronic brain injury, 8 weeks of group yoga significantly improved mobility, as measured by number of feet walked during the 6 Minute Walk Test. B) Illustration of individual participants: 6 of the 7 pilot participants had improved mobility following 8 weeks of group yoga. Note: Error bars represent standard error. * represents p <.05.
Figure 3.
Figure 3.
A) In 7 adults with chronic brain injury, 8 weeks of group yoga significantly improved perception of occupational performance, as measured by the Canadian Occupational Performance Measure (COPM) performance subscore. B) Illustration of individual participants: 5 of the 7 pilot participants reported improved occupational performance following 8 weeks of group yoga. Note: Error bars represent standard error. * represents p <.05.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention USDoHaHS. Surveillance Report of Traumatic Brain Injury-related Emergency Department Visits, Hospitalizations, and Deaths—United States, 2014; In:2019.
    1. Masel BE, DeWitt DS. Traumatic brain injury: a disease process, not an event. J Neurotrauma. 2010;27(8):1529–1540. - PubMed
    1. What is the difference between an acquired brain injury and a traumatic brain injury? Brain Injury Association of America. https://www.biausa.org/brain-injury/about-brain-injury/nbiic/what-is-the... Accessed 9.10.19.
    1. Whiteneck GG, Cuthbert JP, Corrigan JD, Bogner JA. Prevalence of Self-Reported Lifetime History of Traumatic Brain Injury and Associated Disability: A Statewide Population-Based Survey. J Head Trauma Rehabil. 2016;31(1):E55–62. - PubMed
    1. Corrigan JD, Hammond FM. Traumatic brain injury as a chronic health condition. Arch Phys Med Rehabil. 2013;94(6):1199–1201. - PubMed

LinkOut - more resources