Feasibility and Impact of a Yoga Intervention on Cognition, Physical Function, Physical Activity, and Affective Outcomes among People Living with HIV: A Randomized Controlled Pilot Trial

Abstract

The purpose of this pilot randomized controlled trial is to assess the feasibility and impact of a triweekly 12-week yoga intervention among people living with HIV (PLWH). Additional objectives included evaluating cognition, physical function, medication adherence, health-related quality of life (HRQoL), and mental health among yoga participants versus controls using blinded assessors. We recruited 22 medically stable PLWH aged ≥35 years. A priori feasibility criteria were ≥70% yoga session attendance and ≥70% of participants satisfied with the intervention using a postparticipation questionnaire. Two participants withdrew from the yoga group. Mean yoga class attendance was 82%, with 100% satisfaction. Intention-to-treat analyses (yoga n = 11, control n = 11) showed no within- or between-group differences in cognitive and physical function. The yoga group improved over time in HRQoL cognition ( P = .047) with trends toward improvements in HRQoL health transition ( P =.063) and depression ( P = .055). This pilot study provides preliminary evidence of feasibility and benefits of yoga for PLWH.

Effects of Physical Activity Interventions on Health Outcomes among Older Adults Living with HIV: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

“…Figure 2 shows the risk-of-bias results for the included studies. Among 12 studies, the overall bias of 8 studies was classified as “having some concerns” [ 16 , 18 , 27 , 33 , 34 , 35 , 36 , 37 , 38 ], and the overall bias of 4 studies was classified as “high risk” [ 17 , 19 , 39 , 40 ]. A high risk-of-bias was identified by deviation from the intended interventions, as participants were not blinded to the intervention allocation.…”

“…In five studies, interventions were targeted at people with HIV and other comorbidities presenting certain symptoms or diagnoses such as cardiovascular diseases [ 18 , 38 , 40 ], neurocognitive impairment [ 34 ], mild-to-moderate functional limitations [ 19 ], and chronic lower back or lower extremity pain [ 37 ]. In one study, participants were specifically African American middle-aged men with HIV [ 35 ], while in three other studies participants included adults living with HIV not limited to specific conditions [ 27 , 36 , 39 ].…”

“…Details concerning the intervention characteristics of each study is presented in Table 2 . Seven of the twelve studies provided interventions focused only on physical activity; among these, five studies provided interventions in which participants performed physical activities face-to-face: high-intensity aerobic exercise [ 16 , 17 , 27 ], group-based moderate-intensity aerobic and resistance exercise [ 33 ], and group-based yoga classes [ 36 ]. The other two studies provided interventions to promote physical activity.…”

Meditation and Aerobic Exercise Enhance Mental Health Outcomes and Pattern Separation Learning Without Changing Heart Rate Variability in Women with HIV

“…However, these effects may depend on the type of activity. One study reported no change in cognition after a yoga intervention, which was not aerobic (Quigley et al, 2020 ). Therefore, the increase in pattern separation in women with HIV reported here is novel.…”

Acute effect of resistance exercise on cognitive function in people living with HIV

“…[8][9][10][11] These neurocognitive disorders could be classified into three forms: asymptomatic neurocognitive impairment, mild neurocognitive disorders, and HIV-associated dementia. 2,12,13 Thus, physical exercise, once it has demonstrated the potential to prevent or mitigate cognitive impairment in apparently healthy people 14,15 or those with comorbidities, [16][17][18] may be an additional strategy to combat cognitive impairment caused by HIV. Particularly, resistance exercise (RE) has been identified as a promising strategy to combat the damage caused by HIV in several health parameters, such as glycemic control, 19 blood pressure 20 and body composition.…”