Autonomic dysfunction is an independent predictor of cardiovascular and all-cause mortality after myocardial infarction (MI). We tested the effects of a 12-week yoga-based cardiac rehabilitation program on heart rate variability (HRV) in 80 patients post-MI. This randomized controlled trial with two parallel groups was carried out in a tertiary care institution in India. The yoga group received 13 hospital-based structured yoga sessions as an adjunct to standard care. Control group participants received enhanced standard care involving three brief educational sessions with a leaflet on the importance of diet and physical activity. HRV was measured in all participants with lead II electrocardiogram (ECG) signals. One yoga group patient's data were excluded due to ECG abnormalities. Baseline measurement was done 3 weeks post-MI, and postintervention assessment took place at the 13th week. HRV frequency and time domain indices were analyzed. There were no significant between-group differences in the HRV time domain indices. Frequency domain indices showed significant between-group differences in HF power (absolute) (yoga vs. control: 114.42 [−794.80–7,993.78] vs. −38.14 [−4,843.50–1,617.87], p = 0.005) and total power (nu) (yoga vs. control: 44.96 [21.94] vs. −19.55 [15.42], p = 0.01) with higher HF power and total power (nu) in the yoga group. It should be noted that these results cannot be generalized to high risk patients. Respiratory frequency control to check for influence of respiratory rate on RR interval was not evaluated. This short-term yoga-based cardiac rehabilitation program had additive effects in shifting sympathovagal balance toward parasympathetic predominance while increasing overall HRV in optimally medicated post-MI patients.

Introduction: Endothelial function and oxidative stress play a vital role in the prognosis following acute myocardial infarction (AMI). We evaluated the effect of Yoga-based Cardiac Rehabilitation (Yoga-CaRe) programme on markers of endothelial function and oxidative stress. Methods: Yoga-CaRe trial is a multi-centre randomized controlled trial. Participants with AMI were assessed for eligibility and following randomization, participants underwent Yoga-CaRe program (13 in-hospital sessions supervised by an instructor with encouragement to practice regularly at home) or enhanced standard care (3 educational sessions). We estimated asymmetric dimethylarginine (ADMA), endothelial nitric oxide (eNOS), total nitric oxide concentration (NOx), endothelin-1 (ET-1), oxidized-LDL (Ox-LDL), superoxide dismutase (SOD), total anti-oxidant capacity (TAOC), tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNFα), C-reactive protein (CRP), P-Selectin, E-selectin, ICAM-1 and VCAM at baseline and at 12 weeks. Blood samples were collected as part of two sub-studies. All the laboratory analysis were conducted in a standardized laboratory. We used ANCOVA to assess the difference between the groups. Results: Eighty-two blood samples (43 in Yoga-CaRe and 39 in enhanced standard care) were included in the analysis. The mean age of participants was 52.5±10.6 years and 19.5% were females. At 12 weeks, Yoga-CaRe reduced ET-1 (p<0.001), ADMA (p=0.02) and ICMA-1 (p=0.019) and increased TAOC (p=0.03) than enhanced standard care group. Reduction in E-selectin (p=0.02) and VCAM (p=0.003) were higher in enhanced standard care than Yoga-CaRe group. We found no difference in other parameters. Conclusion: These results suggest that Yoga-CaRe may improve the endothelial function (through reduction in ET-1), anti-oxidant status and modulate adhesion molecules in patients following AMI. Our study was exploratory and the findings are intriguing. This needs evaluation in a larger trial.

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Objectives Yoga is increasingly being introduced in workplace settings to improve health and well-being. However, there is a lack of studies reporting the effect of yoga in people on public service-related work, who are at high risk for various health-related problems. Thus, the objective of this study was to find the effect of yoga on cardiovascular functions and psychological (stress, anxiety, and depression) aspects of people on public service-related work. Methods A single-group pre-test and post-test experimental study design was adopted. Eighty-two participants aged 41.52 ± 7.44 years who are working in the Tamil Nadu Public Service Commission were undergone 1-h of yoga (under the supervision of a yoga & naturopathy doctor) a day, 5-days a week for a period of 1-month at their office. Cardiovascular functions such as systolic blood pressure (SBP), diastolic blood pressure (DBP), and pulse rate (PR) were measured using an automatic BP monitor. Psychological variables such as stress, anxiety, and depression were measured using Depression Anxiety and Stress Scales (DASS) before and after the intervention. Results Results of this study showed a significant reduction in body mass index, SBP, DBP, PR, mean arterial pressure, rate pressure product, and double product. Though results showed insignificant (just missed the statistical significance [p=0.056]) reduction in anxiety, it showed clinical improvement (i.e. the mean anxiety score has reduced from moderate category to mild category). However, there is neither statistically significant nor clinical difference in stress and depression. None of the participants reported any untoward events during the study period. Conclusions Results suggest that yoga might improve the cardiovascular functions and anxiety of people in public service-related work. However, no such significant improvement was noted in their stress and depression levels. However, a randomized controlled trial is required to warrant the results of this study.