Yoga as an Alternative and Complementary Treatment for Asthma: A Systematic Review

The morbidity and mortality associated with asthma make it a worldwide health concern. Corticosteroid therapy is the most popular method to treat asthma, but yoga has been identified as an alternative therapy to expensive drugs. A systematic review of studies meeting the following criteria is presented: (a) be published in the English language; (b) included in CINAHL, Medline, or Alt HealthWatch; (c) between the years 1972 and 2012; (d) include yoga as an intervention; (e) use any quantitative study design; and (f) measures one of the following outcomes: forced expiratory volume in 1 second, peak expiratory flow rate, airway resistance, or Asthma Quality of Life Questionnaire score. Of the 15 studies systematically analyzed, 10 documented significant improvement because of yoga. Limitations include lack of a theory-based approach, self-reporting errors, and intervention adherence issues.