![Sample our Medicine, Dentistry, Nursing & Allied Health journals, sign in here to start your FREE access for 14 days]({"type":"image" , "src" : "/sda/5944/TOC-Subject-Sample-2021-Medicine-Dentistry-Nursing-Allied-Health.jpg"})
Abstract
Cognitive impairment (CI) is an important feature of relapsing remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS). Yogic relaxation techniques have been found useful in improving various cognitive domains in health and disease. Eighteen subjects (13 females) in the age range of 51.5 ± 12.72 years with the diagnosis of RRMS by a neurologist (McDonald Criteria 2010) since last 18.16 ± 12.59 years were recruited into the study from a neuro-rehabilitation centre in Germany. Assessments were done before and immediately after two randomly allocated 30-min sessions of yogic relaxation: Cyclic Meditation (CM) and SR (supine rest or shavasana). Assessments were done for attention, psychomotor performance, information processing speed, executive functions, and immediate and delayed recall using standard psychometric tools. RMANOVA was applied to analyse the data using SPSS version 10. Both CM and SR sessions improved scores on Digit Symbol Substitution Test (DSST) (p < 0.01) and Auditory Verbal Learning Test (AVLT) (p < 0.05). There was a significantly better performance in Trail Making Test (TMT)-A and forward digit span (FDS) after CM as compared to SR (p < 0.01). Yogic relaxation techniques may have an immediate enhancing effect on processing speed, psychomotor performance, and recall of RRMS patients. CM is better than SR in improving processing speed, short-term memory, and verbal working memory.
Acknowledgements
We acknowledge the subjects who gave their consent and participated in this study. We are grateful for the co-operation by the staff and management of SVYASA Yoga University, Bangalore and KWA Klinik, Stift Rottal, Bad Griesbach, Germany.
Disclosure statement
The authors report no conflicts of interest. The authors alone are responsible for the content and writing of the paper.