The risks and benefits of yoga for patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

To determine the effectiveness and safety of yoga interventions on disease symptoms, quality of life and function in patients diagnosed with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). Medline/PubMed, Scopus, and CENTRAL (Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials) were searched through 6 June 2019. Randomized controlled trials assessing the effects of yoga on quality of life, dyspnea, exercise capacity, and pulmonary function (FEV1) in patients with COPD were included. Safety was defined as secondary outcome. Mean differences (MD) and standardized mean differences (SMD) with 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were computed. Risk of bias was assessed using the Cochrane tool. Eleven randomized controlled trials with a total of 586 patients were included. Meta-analysis revealed evidence for effects of yoga compared to no treatment on quality of life on the COPD Assessment Test (MD = 3.81; 95% CI = 0.97 to 6.65; This meta-analysis found robust effects of yoga on exercise capacity and pulmonary function in patients with COPD. Yoga, specifically yoga breathing techniques, can be an effective adjunct intervention for patients with COPD. Yoga's safety needs to be assessed in more depth in future studies.