The effect of a six-week program of yoga and meditation on brachial artery reactivity: do psychosocial interventions affect vascular tone?
BACKGROUND
Chronic stress is estimated to increase the risk of cardiovascular (CV) events two-fold. Although stress reduction has been linked to a reduction in CV events, little is known regarding its exact mechanism of benefit.


OBJECTIVE
Yoga and meditation will improve parameters of endothelial function.


METHODS
We examined the effects of yoga and meditation on hemodynamic and laboratory parameters as well as on endothelial function in a 6-week pilot study. Systolic and diastolic blood pressures, heart rate, body mass index (BMI), fasting glucose, lipids, hs C-reactive protein (CRP), and endothelial function (as assessed by brachial artery reactivity) were all studied at baseline and after 6 weeks of yoga practice.


RESULTS
A course in yoga and meditation was given to the subjects for 1.5 h three times weekly for 6 weeks and subjects were instructed to continue their efforts at home. This prospective cohort study included 33 subjects (mean age 55 +/- 11 years) both with (30%) and without (70%) established coronary artery disease (CAD). There were significant reductions in blood pressure, heart rate, and BMI in the total cohort with yoga. None of the laboratory parameters changed significantly with yoga. For the total cohort there was no significant improvement in endothelial-dependent vasodilatation with yoga training and meditation compared with baseline (16.7% relative improvement from 7.2-8.4%; p = 0.3). In the group with CAD, endothelial-dependent vasodilatation improved 69% with yoga training (6.38-10.78%; p = 0.09).


CONCLUSIONS
Yoga and meditation appear to improve endothelial function in subjects with CAD.
Sivasankaran
Satish
S
Division of Cardiovascular Medicine, Department of Medicine, Bridgeport Hospital, Bridgeport, Connecticut 06610, USA.
Pollard-Quintner
Suzanne
S
Sachdeva
Rajesh
R
Pugeda
Jaime
J
Hoq
Sheik M
SM
Zarich
Stuart W
SW
D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D015415:Biomarkers / Q000097:blood; D001786:Blood Glucose / Q000378:metabolism; D001794:Blood Pressure; D015992:Body Mass Index; D001916:Brachial Artery / Q000503:physiopathology*; D002097:C-Reactive Protein / Q000378:metabolism; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D003324:Coronary Artery Disease / Q000209:etiology / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000628:therapy; D004730:Endothelium, Vascular / Q000503:physiopathology; D005260:Female; D006339:Heart Rate; D006801:Humans; D008055:Lipids / Q000097:blood; D008297:Male; D019122:Meditation; D008875:Middle Aged; D015999:Multivariate Analysis; D010865:Pilot Projects; D011446:Prospective Studies; D013315:Stress, Psychological / Q000150:complications / Q000503:physiopathology* / Q000628:therapy*; D016896:Treatment Outcome; D014664:Vasodilation; D015013:Yoga
D015415:Biomarkers; D001786:Blood Glucose; D008055:Lipids; D002097:C-Reactive Protein