The Benefits of Yoga for African American Heart Failure Patients.

BACKGROUND:: The number of African-American (AA) patients living with heart failure (HF) has been increasing, especially among the economically disadvantaged. Yoga therapy has been found to improve physical and psychological parameters among healthy individuals but its effect in patients with HF remains unknown. The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of yoga therapy on cardiovascular endurance (VO2peak), flexibility, quality of life (QoL) and inflammatory markers on medically stable HF patients. METHODS:: Forty patients (38 AA, 1 Asian, 1 Caucasian) with systolic or diastolic HF were randomized to the yoga group (YG, N=21) or the control group (CG, N=19). All patients were asked to follow a home walk program. Pre- and post-measurements included a treadmill stress test to peak exertion, flexibility, interleukin-6 (IL-6), C- reactive protein (CRP), and extra cellular-super oxide dismutase (EC-SOD). QoL was assessed by the Minnesota Living with Heart Failure Questionnaire (MLwHFQ). RESULTS:: The statistical analyses (assessed by ANOVA and T-tests) were significant for favorable changes in the YG, as compared to the CG, for flexibility (P=0.012), treadmill time (P=0.002), VO2peak (P=0.003), and the biomarkers (IL-6, P=0.004; CRP, P=0.016 and EC-SOD, P=0.012). Within the YG, pre- to post-test scores for the total (P=0.02) and physical sub-scales (P<0.001) of the MLwHFQ were improved. CONCLUSION:: Yoga therapy offered additional benefits to the standard medical care of predominantly AA HF patients by improving cardiovascular endurance, QoL, inflammatory markers and flexibility.