Trial reportComplementary therapies in medicine2018
A randomized controlled dosing study of Iyengar yoga and coherent breathing for the treatment of major depressive disorder: Impact on suicidal ideation and safety findings.
Trial report in Complementary therapies in medicine, 2018. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 11 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
What it found
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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.
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.
Who cites it
11 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it.
- Effectiveness of yoga for major depressive disorder: A systematic review and meta-analysis.Frontiers in psychiatry · 2023Pooled it
- Iyengar yoga and health education interventions for prolonged grief disorder in later life: feasibility of a randomized controlled pilot trial.Scientific reports · 2025Trial
- Effect of coherent breathing on mental health and wellbeing: a randomised placebo-controlled trial.Scientific reports · 2023Trial
- A Randomized Controlled Trial of Community-Delivered Heated Hatha Yoga for Moderate-to-Severe Depression.The Journal of clinical psychiatry · 2023Trial
- Breathing-focused Yoga as Augmentation for Unipolar and Bipolar Depression: A Randomized Controlled Trial: Le yoga axé sur la respiration comme traitement d'appoint pour la dépression unipolaire et bipolaire: Un essai randomisé contrôlé.Canadian journal of psychiatry. Revue canadienne de psychiatrie · 2021Trial
- Thalamic Gamma Aminobutyric Acid Level Changes in Major Depressive Disorder After a 12-Week Iyengar Yoga and Coherent Breathing Intervention.Journal of alternative and complementary medicine (New York, N.Y.) · 2020Trial
- Kynurenine Pathway Metabolites as Mediators of Exercise-Induced Mood Enhancement, Fatigue Resistance, and Neuroprotection.International journal of molecular sciences · 2025Review
- A Nunavut community-directed Inuit youth mental wellness initiative: making I-SPARX fly.International journal of circumpolar health · 2024Article
- Defining the Characteristics of an e-Health Tool for Suicide Primary Prevention in the General Population: The StopBlues Case in France.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2023Review
- Asynchronous Technologies in Mental Health Care and Education.Current treatment options in psychiatry · 2023Review
- The Effect of Vinyasa Yoga Practice on the Well-Being of Breast-Cancer Patients during COVID-19 Pandemic.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2023Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
12 authors.
Funding
Abstract
backgroundYoga interventions offer promise for the treatment of major depressive disorder (MDD), yet their safety and potential impact on suicidal ideation (SI) have not been well documented. This study evaluated the safety of a randomized controlled dose-finding trial of Iyengar yoga plus coherent breathing for individuals with MDD, as well as the potential effects of the intervention on SI without intent.
methodsParticipants with Beck Depression Inventory-II (BDI-II) scores ≥14 and a diagnosis of MDD (using DSM-IV criteria) were randomized to either a low dose group (LDG) or high dose group (HDG) and received a 12-week manualized intervention. The LDG included two 90-min yoga classes plus three 30-min homework sessions weekly. The HDG offered three 90-min classes plus four 30-min homework sessions weekly.
resultsThirty-two individuals with MDD were randomized, of which 30 completed the protocol. At screening, SI without intent was endorsed on the BDI-II by 9 participants; after completing the intervention, 8 out of 9 reported resolution of SI. There were 17 adverse events possibly-related and 15 definitely-related to the intervention. The most common protocol-related adverse event was musculoskeletal pain, which resolved over the course of the study.
conclusionsThe Iyengar yoga plus coherent breathing intervention was associated with the resolution of SI in 8 out of 9 participants, with mild side effects that were primarily musculoskeletal in nature. This preliminary evidence suggests that this intervention may reduce SI without intent and be safe for use in those with MDD.
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