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Cited by 89Mindfulness and Compassion InterventionsAnxiety, Depression, Psychometrics, Treatment, Cognitive ProcessesPsychotherapy Techniques and Applications

A multicomponent yoga-based, breath intervention program as an adjunctive treatment in patients suffering from generalized anxiety disorder with or without comorbidities

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Katzman, MartinA, Vermani, Monica, Gerbarg, PatriciaL, Brown, RichardP, Iorio, Christina, Davis, Michele, Cameron, Catherine, Tsirgielis, Dina·2012·International Journal of Yoga
DOI 10.4103/0973-6131.91716PMC PMC3276935
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Abstract

OBJECTIVES: The aim of this study is to evaluate the efficacy and tolerability of Sudarshan Kriya Yoga (SKY) course in generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) outpatients, who after eight weeks of an appropriate dose of traditional therapy had not yet achieved remission. SUBJECTS: The adult participants (18-65 years) were outpatients with a primary diagnosis of GAD with or without comorbidities on the Mini-International Neuropsychiatric Interview (MINI). Participants had a minimum of eight weeks standard treatment with an appropriate dose of a standard prescription anxiolytic, a clinician global impression-severity (CGI-S) score of 5-7, a Hamilton anxiety scale (HAM-A) total score ≥20 including a score of >2 on the anxious mood and tension items. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Forty-one patients were enrolled in an open-label trial of the SKY course as an adjunct to standard treatment of GAD at the START Clinic for Mood and Anxiety Disorders, a tertiary care mood and anxiety disorder clinic in Toronto. The SKY course was administered over five days (22 h total). Subjects were encouraged to practice the yoga breathing techniques at home for 20 min per day after the course and were offered group practice sessions for 2 h once a week led by certified yoga instructors. The primary outcome measure was the mean change from pre-treatment on the HAM-A scale. Psychological measures were obtained at baseline and four weeks after completing the intervention. RESULTS: Thirty-one patients completed the program (mean age 42.6 ± 13.3 years). Among completers, significant reductions occurred in the pre- and post-intervention mean HAM-A total score (t=4.59; P<0.01) and psychic subscale (t=5.00; P≤0.01). The response rate was 73% and the remission rate 41% as measured on the HAM-A. CONCLUSION: The results of this small pilot trial suggest that the SKY course represents a potentially valuable adjunct to standard pharmacotherapy in patients with GAD or treatment-resistant GAD, and warrants further investigation. In particular, changes in worry and body symptoms showed significant improvements that may further our understanding of the mechanism of change in the tolerance of anxiety and worry.

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  • The higher costs of pharmacological therapies gave rise to the use of alternative methods of treatment.

    “The higher costs of pharmacological therapies, gave rise to the use of alternative methods of treatment [46] .”

    From Alternative Medicine: New Ways to Treat Diseases and Therapies (2021) · cites this paper as [46]

    The Introduction describes limitations of medication for generalized anxiety disorder, including side effects and variable response, and the Conclusion reports a yoga-based intervention used alongside standard treatment. Neither section says that high costs of pharmacological therapies gave rise to alternative treatments; that causal explanation is unsupported. Page numbers are unavailable in our copy. (LLM, conf=0.82)

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Authors
Katzman, M., Vermani, M., Gerbarg, P., Brown, R., Iorio, C., Davis, M., Cameron, C., & Tsirgielis, D.
Affiliations
  • START Clinic (CA)
  • Columbia University (US)
  • Lakehead University (CA)
  • University of Guelph (CA)
Venue
International Journal of Yoga
Publisher
Ovid Technologies (Wolters Kluwer Health)
Published
2012
Volume
5
Issue
1
Pages
57
ISSN
0973-6131 (ISSN-L)
DOI
10.4103/0973-6131.91716
PMC
PMC3276935
OpenAlex
W1990876673
Cited by
89
References
62
Citations by year
2026: 2 · 2025: 5 · 2024: 5 · 2023: 6 · 2022: 7 · 2021: 11 · 2020: 7 · 2019: 4 · 2018: 8 · 2017: 6 · 2016: 4 · 2015: 8 · 2014: 9 · 2013: 4 · 2012: 2
FWCI
8.37
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Licence
cc-by-nc-sa
Locations
  • International Journal of Yoga (publishedVersion, cc-by-nc-sa)
  • PubMed Central (publishedVersion, cc-by-nc-sa)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
  • DOAJ (DOAJ: Directory of Open Access Journals) (submittedVersion, cc-by-sa)
Topics
  • Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Mindfulness and Compassion Interventions
  • Social Sciences › Psychology › Experimental and Cognitive Psychology › Anxiety, Depression, Psychometrics, Treatment, Cognitive Processes
  • Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Psychotherapy Techniques and Applications
Keywords
Sudarshan Kriya Yoga, generalized anxiety disorder, adjunctive therapy, treatment-resistant anxiety, comorbid anxiety disorders, yoga breathing techniques, worry, tolerability, Hamilton Anxiety Rating Scale

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