Abstract

Background:Hypertensionisoneofthepsychosomaticdisordersprevalentthroughouttheworld.Itneedsnotonlymedical management but also lifestyle modification as it is the major contributing factor in the pathogenesis of the disease. Yoga is one such tool that can be used in the management of hypertension. To measure the effect of yoga, various scientific communities have frequently used heart rate variability by spectral analysis. This study was conducted to evaluate the therapeutic potential of yoga by Poincaré plot analysis of heart rate variability. Aims and
Objective: To study the effect of 12-week yoga therapy on heart rate variability by Poincaré plot analysis in patients with essential hypertension. MaterialsandMethods: Patients satisfying thestudy criteria from theMedicineOutpatient Department ofJawaharlal Instituteof Postgraduate Medical Education and Research (JIPMER), Puducherry, India, were included in the study after obtaining a written informedconsent.Seventypatientswererandomlydividedintotwogroups:controlandyoga.Yogagroupreceivedsupervisedyoga training(3daysinaweekfor12weeks)inadditiontoroutinemedicalcare.Restingcardiovascularparameters,heartratevariability by Poincaré plot analysis was recorded at the onset of study and after the 12 weeks intervention period in both the groups. Data were analyzed using the appropriate statistical test. p-Value ofo0.05 was considered to be significant.
Results:Asignificant decrease was observed in blood pressure, mean arterial pressure, and rate pressure product in yoga group at the end of study period.AsignificantimprovementwasobservedinPoincaréplotanalysisintheformofincreaseinSD1andSD2intheyogagroup. Conclusion: Poincaré plot analysis can be used independently to evaluate the effects of yoga in patients with hypertension.