A recent study examined the long-term effects of yoga therapy to see whether including it as an additional kind of care for the treatment of heart failure is advantageous.
A form of cardiovascular disease known as heart failure occurs when the heart muscle is either too frail or too stiff to effectively pump blood, leading to fluid retention, shortness of breath, and other problems. The New York Heart Association (NYHA) Functional classification method is the most widely used system for assessing the severity of a patient’s symptoms.
In order to determine whether yoga therapy should be added as an extra kind of care for the treatment of heart failure, a recent study looked at the long-term consequences of the practise.
Heart failure, a type of cardiovascular disease that causes fluid retention, shortness of breath, and other issues, happens when the heart muscle is either too fragile or too stiff to adequately pump blood. The most popular methodology for determining the severity of a patient’s symptoms is the New York Heart Association (NYHA) Functional categorization method.
To be eligible for the experiment, patients had to be between the ages of 30 and 70 and have a left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) of 45%.
Compared to the non-interventional group, which included 40 individuals (30 men and 10 women), the interventional group comprised 35 participants (31 men and 4 women). In contrast to the non-interventional group, which only got standard guideline-directed medical therapy, the interventional group received yoga therapy.
Echocardiographic data were analyzed at several follow-ups to determine the effect of yoga therapy on patients with heart failure.
Thirty-five participants—31 men and four women—were in the interventional group, and forty—30 men and 10 women—were in the non-interventional group. While the non-interventional group simply proceeded with regular guideline-directed medical care, the interventional group received both yoga therapy and such treatment.
At various follow-ups, echocardiographic measures were evaluated to see how yoga treatment affected patients with heart failure.
“Yoga is a combination of mind-body techniques, which is a set of physical exercises [asana] with breathing techniques [pranayama], relaxation, and meditation that can be used effectively to stimulate physical and mental well-being,” said Ajit Singh, Ph.D, research scientist for the Indian Council for Medical Research at Kasturba Medical College & Hospital, Manipal Academy of Heart Education in Manipal, India, and lead author of the study.
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When compared to patients taking medicine without yoga, “our patients observed improvement in systolic blood pressure and heart rate.”
A professional yoga therapist taught participants in the yoga group specific yoga treatment, such as pranayama, meditation, and relaxation techniques, at the hospital’s Department of Yoga. The duration of each session was roughly 60 minutes, and after one week of supervision at the training facility, participants were asked to continue self-administered yoga at home.
The yoga group was instructed to do yoga at least five days a week for a full year. All of the trainees were taught the same processes collectively at the training facility, but there was also access to individualised help.
The World Health Organization’s Quality of Life questionnaire, which employs 26 items to assess quality of life in four areas: physical, psychological, social, and environmental health, was used by researchers to gauge changes in quality of life. At enrollment, 24 weeks into the study, and 48 weeks into the follow-up, the participants answered questions on the questionnaire.
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The study, according to the researchers, revealed that those who practised yoga saw improvements in their quality of life, strength, endurance, and balance. Additionally, they noted that despite the fact that patients’ physical and mental health had improved, their social and environmental health had not.
At baseline, there were no discernible variations in echocardiographic parameters between the two groups. Biventricular systolic function was improved in the interventional (yoga) group in comparison to the non-interventional group at both the six- and 12-month follow-ups. According to the NHYA categorization, the interventional group likewise displayed a significant increase in functional outcomes.
According to Singh, “this study demonstrates that adding yoga therapy to conventional medical management of heart failure improves left ventricular systolic function and quality of life in heart failure patients.”
In light of this, yoga therapy among heart failure patients receiving guideline-directed optimal medical therapy may enhance physical well-being and left ventricular function.
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