Background
Musculoskeletal conditions are one of the most common causes of chronic non-malignant pain in adults.1 Continuous pain significantly impacts patients physiologically and psychologically, lowering their quality of life as well as imposing a financial burden.2
We examined the efficacy of yoga therapy on patients with mild to moderate chronic musculoskeletal pain.3,4
Methods
This was a randomised wait list-controlled trial conducted between between June 2013 and April 2015 at multiple centres. Eligible patients were aged 18–60 years; clinically diagnosed with musculoskeletal conditions including osteoarthritis, rheumatoid arthritis, low back pain, joint/muscle pain, or chronic non-malignant pain with mild to moderate intensity. The primary efficacy endpoint was the change in box scale-11 pain scores. Secondary outcome included sleep quality and quality of life. Patients’ satisfaction was reported through a scale of 0–10 at the end of the intervention.
Results
A total of 98 patients completed the analysis. The mean box scale-11 had statistically significant improvement from baseline to 8 weeks, which was maintained until the end of the study week 16 (p<0.0001). Sleep quality improved to ‘good’ in 67% of patients. By week 8, the mean levels of functioning for all quality of life domains improved (p<0.001), which continued to improve by the end of week 16 (p<0.0001).
Conclusions
Yoga therapy provides effective pain relief as a 16-week treatment for patients with chronic musculoskeletal pain. More studies are needed to examine the long-term efficacy of yoga therapy.
- © Royal College of Physicians 2019. All rights reserved.
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