Evidence map›Paper›PMID 26504475›Full record

ReviewEvidence-based complementary and alternative medicine : eCAM2015

The Effects of Bikram Yoga on Health: Critical Review and Clinical Trial Recommendations.

Zoe L Hewett, Birinder S Cheema, Kate L Pumpa, Caroline A Smith

Abstract readReview
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Review in Evidence-based complementary and alternative medicine : eCAM, 2015. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 12 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
12citing papers in PubMed, 1 pooled it
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

12 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it.

  1. Pooled it
  2. Trial
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  5. Article
  6. Review
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  12. Effect of heat stress on vascular outcomes in humans.Journal of applied physiology (Bethesda, Md. : 1985) · 2019
    Review
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

4 authors.

Zoe L HewettSchool of Science and Health, Western Sydney University, Campbelltown Campus, Campbelltown, NSW 2560, Australia.
Birinder S CheemaSchool of Science and Health, Western Sydney University, Campbelltown Campus, Campbelltown, NSW 2560, Australia ; The National Institute of Complementary Medicine, Western Sydney University, Campbelltown Campus, Campbelltown, NSW 2560, Australia.
Kate L PumpaUniversity of Canberra Research Institute for Sport and Exercise, University of Canberra, Bruce, ACT 2617, Australia.
Caroline A SmithThe National Institute of Complementary Medicine, Western Sydney University, Campbelltown Campus, Campbelltown, NSW 2560, Australia.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Bikram yoga is a style of hatha yoga involving a standarized series of asanas performed to an instructional dialogue in a heated environment (40.6°C, 40% humidity). Several studies evaluating the effect of Bikram yoga on health-related outcomes have been published over the past decade. However, to date, there are no comprehensive reviews of this research and there remains a lack of large-scale, robustly-designed randomised controlled trials (RCT) of Bikram yoga training. The purpose of this review is to contextualise and summarise trials that have evaluated the effects of Bikram yoga on health and to provide recommendations for future research. According to published literature, Bikram yoga has been shown to improve lower body strength, lower and upper body range of motion, and balance in healthy adults. Non-RCTs report that Bikram yoga may, in some populations, improve glucose tolerance, bone mineral density, blood lipid profile, arterial stiffness, mindfulness, and perceived stress. There is vast potential for further, improved research into the effects of Bikram yoga, particularly in unhealthy populations, to better understand intervention-related adaptations and their influence on the progression of chronic disease. Future research should adhere to CONSORT guidelines for better design and reporting to improve research quality in this field.

Identifiers

PMID26504475
PMCPMC4609431

What OpenQuestion holds

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LicenceCC BY
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Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.