SynthesisComprehensive Physiology2025
The Effectiveness of Yoga for Irritable Bowel Syndrome: A Systematic Review.
Synthesis in Comprehensive Physiology, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 4 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled 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.
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
4 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it.
- The Effectiveness of Yoga for Irritable Bowel Syndrome: A Systematic Review.Comprehensive Physiology · 2025Pooled it
- Somatic yoga therapy for functional neurological disorder: feasibility randomised controlled trial.BJPsych open · 2026Article
- Irritable bowel syndrome with diarrhea: time to change practice?Current opinion in gastroenterology · 2026Review
- The neurophysiological effects of yogic meditation observed in electroencephalography patterns and neurotransmitter levels: A narrative review of scientific evidence.Journal of Ayurveda and integrative medicineReview
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
6 authors.
Funding
Abstract
backgroundIrritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS) is a common functional gastrointestinal disorder affecting 5%-10% of the global population and is characterized by recurrent abdominal pain and dysregulation of bowel movements. Many patients do not benefit from full remission of symptoms by conventional treatments. Recently, yoga has demonstrated its potential benefits in various medical conditions including IBS, as a result of its effect on the gut-brain axis. This systematic review evaluates the effectiveness of yoga for the management of IBS.
methodsWe conducted a comprehensive literature search in PubMed and Scopus until March 2025 to identify studies on yogic posture, pranayama, and meditation in IBS. After excluding reviews, case reports, and studies not meeting age or design criteria, 10 studies were included. These were evaluated for methodological quality and classified as randomized controlled trials (RCTs) or non-controlled trials. We analyzed outcomes related to gastrointestinal symptoms, quality of life, and psychological symptoms and examined the type of yoga administered.
resultsYoga interventions led to amelioration of gastrointestinal symptoms, decreased anxiety and depression, and enhanced quality of life compared to usual care or wait-list controls. Of note, the studies that fixed the change in the IBS Symptom Severity Scale scores as the primary outcome showed a moderate-large effect of yoga on the improvement of symptoms compared to controls (Cohen's d range: 0.37-3.60).
conclusionThese preliminary findings suggest that yoga could favorably influence both the physical and psychological aspects of IBS. However, high-quality larger sample studies are needed to confirm the findings reported in the review.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
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.