The Effect of Yoga Therapy in Premenstrual Syndrome: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Randomised Controlled Trials.

Objective: Up to 80% of women of reproductive age are thought to experience premenstrual stress, which is characterised by physical, psychological, and behavioural changes. Yoga activity lowers harmful inflammatory secretions that provide comfort for premenstrual syndrome (PMS) sufferers.

Data Sources: The following worldwide databases were searched for this systematic review: Scopus, PubMed, Cochrane Library, PEDro, and Google Scholar from inception to August 2022.

Study Selection: A population, intervention, comparison, outcome, and study design framework was used for searching. Population included those with PMS or premenstrual tension syndromes, the intervention included yoga therapy, comparator was with control group, and outcome measures included blood pressure (BP) (systolic BP [SBP], diastolic BP [DBP]) and heart rate (HR).

Data Extraction And Synthesis: To evaluate the study, we employed the methodological index for randomised controlled trials. Fixed effects meta-analysis and qualitative synthesis were conducted. A total of 14 studies out of 224 were included. The main outcome measures included in this review were SBP, DBP, HR, and Moos Menstrual Distress Questionnaire. For the meta-analysis, 7 studies were considered. Three studies contributed data of SBP (mean difference [MD] -0.30; 95% CI -2.29 to 1.69, heterogenicity [I] = 96%, P = 0.00001) and DBP (MD -0.25; 95% CI -0.99 to 0.49, I = 79%, P = 0.009). HR results from 4 studies were included (MD 0.08; 95% CI -0.83 to 0.99, I = 89%, P = 0.00001). A total of 3 studies contributed data of Moos Menstrual Distress Questionnaire (MD 1.50; 95% CI 0.91-2.10, I = 92%, P = 0.00001).

Conclusion: Yoga can help people with both medical and psychological conditions including menstrual pain, irregular periods, stress, tension, and anxiety. It has been shown to lessen women's emotional, behavioural, and physical PMS symptoms, which has enhanced their quality of life.