Yoga benefits in heart failure reported

Among other things, yoga improved exercise tolerance, according to this study from Georgia State University in Atlanta.

First, the details.

• 19 people with chronic heart failure (ranging from mild to marked) were randomly assigned to yoga treatment or standard medical therapy.

And, the results.

• Exercise time and heart work (measured by VO2 peak) significantly improved with yoga vs standard medical care.
• There were statistically significant reductions in serum levels of IL-6 (interleukin-6; pro-inflammatory protein) and hsCRP (C-reactive protein; test for risk of heart attack) and an increase in extracellular superoxide dismutase (EC-SOD; detoxification of reactive oxygen species) with yoga.
• Quality of life scores improved 26% with yoga group vs 3% in the standard care group.

The bottom line?
In addition to exercise tolerance, there were improvements in a range of laboratory test, consistent with benefits for the heart.

But it’s a very small group of patients with a range of heart dysfunction, and earlier studies in small groups show inconsistent results here and here.

6/10/08 11:08 JR