Author: Seyed Aria Nejadghaderi1, Seyed Ehsan Mousavi2, Asra Fazlollahi3, Kimia Motlagh Asghari4, Dana Rose Garfin5
Affiliation: <sup>1</sup> HIV/STI Surveillance Research Center, and WHO Collaborating Center for HIV Surveillance, Institute for Futures Studies in Health, Kerman University of Medical Sciences, Kerman, Iran; Systematic Review and Meta‑analysis Expert Group (SRMEG), Universal Scientific Education and Research Network (USERN), Tehran, Iran.
<sup>2</sup> Neurosciences Research Center, Aging Research Institute, Tabriz University of Medical Sciences, Tabriz, Iran; Social Determinants of Health Research Center, Department of Community Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Tabriz University of Medical Sciences, Tabriz, Iran.
<sup>3</sup> Student Research Committee, Tabriz University of Medical Sciences, Tabriz, Iran.
<sup>4</sup> Neurosciences Research Center, Aging Research Institute, Tabriz University of Medical Sciences, Tabriz, Iran.
<sup>5</sup> Community Health Sciences, Fielding School of Public Health, University of California, 560 Charles E Young Drive South, Box 951772, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA. Electronic address: dgarfin@ucla.edu.
Conference/Journal: Psychiatry Res
Date published: 2024 Jul 22
Other:
Volume ID: 340 , Pages: 116098 , Special Notes: doi: 10.1016/j.psychres.2024.116098. , Word Count: 222
Yoga is an increasingly popular complementary intervention to reduce posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms and related comorbidities, but its safety and treatment efficacy are not firmly established. We conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis of existing randomized control trials (RCTs) of yoga interventions for PTSD and related secondary outcomes (e.g., depression). Initial search results found over 668 potential papers. Twenty met inclusion criteria (e.g., RCTs on adult participants with PTSD that evaluated safety or efficacy outcomes). Meta-analysis indicated that, compared to control interventions, participation in yoga interventions significantly improved self-report PTSD (standardized mean difference [SMD]: -0.51; 95 % confidence interval [CI]: -0.68, -0.35) and immediate (SMD: -0.39; 95 % CI: -0.56, -0.22) and long-term (SMD: -0.44; 95 % CI: -0.74, -0.13) depression symptoms. However, using clinician-reported assessments, yoga interventions were not associated with improved PTSD symptoms. Type of yoga differentially predicted outcomes. Sensitivity analysis showed consistent effect sizes when omitting each study from main analyses. Six studies reported whether any serious adverse events occurred. None were indicated. No publication bias was found, although individual intervention studies tended to be high in bias. Results suggest yoga is likely a safe and effective complementary intervention for reducing PTSD and depressive symptoms in individuals with PTSD. More rigorous RCTs are warranted.
Keywords: Complementary health; Integrative health; Meditation; Mindfulness; PTSD; Pooled analysis; Randomized controlled trial; Traumatic stress.
PMID: 39191128 DOI: 10.1016/j.psychres.2024.116098