The effect of an integrated yoga routine for osteoarthritis of the knee, conducted by Swami Vivekananda Yoga Research Foundation in India was published in the September 27, 2011 issue of the International Journal of Yoga.
The aim of the study was to evaluate the effect of adding integrated yoga to electric and sound therapy to randomly selected outpatients from Dr. John’s Orthopedic Centre in India.
There were 118 participants in the integrated yoga group and 117 in the control group who received physiotherapy exercises. The age range was 35 to 80 years. Both groups underwent their respective therapies after the electric and sound therapies they all underwent. The yoga group received yoga therapy for 40 minutes each day, six days a week, for two weeks. Follow-up was expected for three months after that.
Integrated yoga included the following: asana, pranayama, meditation, and counseling on yoga-based holistic living with life style changes, weight management, and management of psychosocial stress.
The participants did yoga-based loosening exercises for feet, ankles, knees, hips and waist, upper limbs, neck, and a 17-step relaxation. Then they did strengthening asanas for back, thighs, legs, knees, and ankles, followed by a guided relaxation based on abdominal breathing. They ended with standing asanas, a guided deep relaxation, nadi shodhan (alternate nostril breath) pranayama, and om chants. All these steps with the number of repetitions and time allocations are listed in this highly detailed, well written study.
The results indicated greater improvement in the integrated yoga group than the control physiotherapy group in the following indicators: quality of life, physical function, problems with work and daily activities, emotional problems, energy and fatigue, social functioning, experience of pain, and general health.
The integrated yoga routine is very similar to the program I have for our seniors in Ridgewood, NJ. Some of it is on www.mahasriyoga.com/asana. Breathing and relaxation audio tracks (shorter than meditation tracks on the website) are on www.mahasriyoga.co/pranayama. Based on what the seniors say to me, our results are similar to those in this study.
Source: International Journal of Yoga
Year : 2011 | Volume: 4 | Issue Number: 2 | Page: 55-63
Effect of an integrated approach of yoga therapy on quality of life in osteoarthritis of the knee joint: A randomized control study
Ebnezar John, Nagarathna Raghuram, Bali Yogitha, Nagendra Hongasandra Ramarao
DOI: 10.4103/0973-6131.85486
PMID: 22022123
Mahasri Yoga 
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