Abstract
Objective
To determine the feasibility and acceptability of a restorative yoga intervention
for the treatment of hot flushes in postmenopausal women.
Methods
A pilot trial in 14 postmenopausal women experiencing ≥4 moderate to severe hot flushes
per day or ≥30 moderate to severe hot flushes per week. The intervention consisted
of eight restorative yoga poses taught in a 3-h introductory session and 8 weekly
90-min sessions. Feasibility was measured by recruitment rates, subject retention
and adherence. Acceptability was assessed by subject interview and questionnaires.
Efficacy measures included change in frequency and severity of hot flushes as recorded
on a 7-day diary.
Results
Recruitment was accomplished as planned. The majority of study subjects (93%) completed
the trial. Of those who completed the trial, 92% attended seven or more of the eight
yoga sessions. The majority of the subjects were satisfied with the study and 75%
continued to practice yoga 3 months after the study. Mean number of hot flushes per
week decreased by 30.8% (95% CI 15.6-45.9%) and mean hot flush score decreased 34.2%
(95% CI 16.0-52.5%) from baseline to week 8. No adverse events were observed.
Conclusions
This pilot trial demonstrates that it is feasible to teach restorative yoga to middle-aged
women without prior yoga experience. The high rates of subject retention and satisfaction
suggest that yoga is an acceptable intervention in this population. Our results indicate
that a larger, randomized controlled trial to explore the efficacy of restorative
yoga for treatment of menopausal symptoms would be safe and feasible.
Keywords
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Article info
Publication history
Published online: August 29, 2006
Accepted:
August 8,
2006
Received:
July 20,
2006
Identification
Copyright
© 2006 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
