Effectiveness of yoga and educational intervention on disability, anxiety, depression, and pain in people with CLBP: A randomized controlled trial

Objective: The current study investigates the effects of an 8-week yoga program with educational intervention compared with an informational pamphlet on disability, anxiety, depression, and pain, in people affected by chronic low back pain (CLBP). Methods: Thirty individuals (age 34.2 +/- 4.52 yrs) with CLBP were randomly assigned into a Yoga Group (YG, n = 15) and a Pamphlet Group (PG, n = 15). The YG participated in an 8-week (2 days per week) yoga program which included education on spine anatomy/biomechanics and the management of CLBP. Main outcome measures: Monitoring response to intervention, the Oswestry Low Back Pain Disability Questionnaire (ODI-I), Zung self-Rating Depression Scale (SDS), Zung Self-Rating Anxiety Scale (SAS) and Numeric Rating Scale for Pain (NRS 0-10) were used to collect data. Results: After intervention, the YG showed a significant decrease (p < 0.05) in the mean score in all assessed variables when compared with baseline data. In addition, statistically significant (p < 0.05) differences were observed among groups at the end of intervention in depression, anxiety, and pain, but not in disability. Conclusions: The yoga program and education together appear to be effective in reducing depression and anxiety, which can affect perception of pain.