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eCAM Advance Access published online on September 4, 2009
eCAM, doi:10.1093/ecam/nep130
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© The Author(s) 2009. Published by Oxford University Press.
This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/2.5/uk/) which permits unrestricted non-commercial use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

Iyengar Yoga versus Enhanced Usual Care on Blood Pressure in Patients with Prehypertension to Stage I Hypertension: a Randomized Controlled Trial

Debbie L. Cohen1, LeAnne T. Bloedon2, Rand L. Rothman2, John T. Farrar3, Mary Lou Galantino3,4, Sheri Volger2, Christine Mayor2, Phillipe O. Szapary2,3 and Raymond R. Townsend1

1Renal Division, University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine, 2Division of General Internal Medicine, University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine, 3Center for Clinical Epidemiology and Biostatistics, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104 and 4Program in Physical Therapy, Richard Stockton College of New Jersey, Pomona, NJ 08240, USA

The prevalence of prehypertension and Stage 1 hypertension continues to increase despite being amenable to non-pharmacologic interventions. Iyengar yoga (IY) has been purported to reduce blood pressure (BP) though evidence from randomized trials is lacking. We conducted a randomized controlled trial to assess the effects of 12 weeks of IY versus enhanced usual care (EUC) (based on individual dietary adjustment) on 24-h ambulatory BP in yoga-naïve adults with untreated prehypertension or Stage 1 hypertension. In total, 26 and 31 subjects in the IY and EUC arms, respectively, completed the study. There were no differences in BP between the groups at 6 and 12 weeks. In the EUC group, 24-h systolic BP (SBP), diastolic BP (DBP) and mean arterial pressure (MAP) significantly decreased by 5, 3 and 3 mmHg, respectively, from baseline at 6 weeks (P < 0.05), but were no longer significant at 12 weeks. In the IY group, 24 h SBP was reduced by 6 mmHg at 12 weeks compared to baseline (P = 0.05). 24 h DBP (P < 0.01) and MAP (P < 0.05) decreased significantly each by 5 mmHg. No differences were observed in catecholamine or cortisol metabolism to explain the decrease in BP in the IY group at 12 weeks. Twelve weeks of IY produces clinically meaningful improvements in 24 h SBP and DBP. Larger studies are needed to establish the long term efficacy, acceptability, utility and potential mechanisms of IY to control BP.

Keywords: hypertension – lifestyle modification – yoga

For reprints and all correspondence: Debbie L. Cohen, Renal Division, University of Pennsylvania, 210 White Building, 3400 Spruce Street, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA. Tel: +1-215-615-0794; Fax: +1-215-615-0349; E-mail: cohendl{at}mail.med.upenn.edu

Received October 13, 2008; accepted July 30, 2009


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