Yoga for COVID-19: An ancient practice for a new condition - A literature review

Denise Capela Santos; Sónia Jaconiano; Sofia Macedo; Filipa Ribeiro; Sara Ponte; Paula Soares; Paula Boaventura

doi:10.1016/j.ctcp.2022.101717

Yoga for COVID-19: An ancient practice for a new condition - A literature review

Complement Ther Clin Pract. 2023 Feb:50:101717. doi: 10.1016/j.ctcp.2022.101717. Epub 2022 Dec 13.

Authors

Denise Capela Santos¹, Sónia Jaconiano², Sofia Macedo³, Filipa Ribeiro³, Sara Ponte⁴, Paula Soares⁵, Paula Boaventura⁶

Affiliations

¹ ESESFM - Escola Superior de Enfermagem S. Francisco das Misericórdias, Lisboa, Portugal.
² EAAD - School of Architecture Art and Design, University of Minho, 4800, Guimarães, Portugal.
³ IPATIMUP - Institute of Molecular Pathology and Immunology of the University of Porto, Porto, Portugal; i3S - Instituto de Investigação e Inovação em Saúde, Universidade do Porto, Rua Alfredo Allen 208, 4200-135, Porto, Portugal.
⁴ Independent Researcher, Portugal.
⁵ IPATIMUP - Institute of Molecular Pathology and Immunology of the University of Porto, Porto, Portugal; i3S - Instituto de Investigação e Inovação em Saúde, Universidade do Porto, Rua Alfredo Allen 208, 4200-135, Porto, Portugal; FMUP - Faculty of Medicine of the University of Porto, Porto, Portugal.
⁶ IPATIMUP - Institute of Molecular Pathology and Immunology of the University of Porto, Porto, Portugal; i3S - Instituto de Investigação e Inovação em Saúde, Universidade do Porto, Rua Alfredo Allen 208, 4200-135, Porto, Portugal; FMUP - Faculty of Medicine of the University of Porto, Porto, Portugal. Electronic address: mboaventura@ipatimup.pt.

Abstract

A substantial proportion of people with acute COVID-19 develop post-COVID-19 condition (previously known as long-COVID) characterized by symptoms that persist for months after the initial infection, including neuropsychological sequelae. Post-COVID-19 condition frequency varies greatly according to different studies, with values ranging from 4 to 80% of the COVID-19 patients. Yoga is a psycho-somatic approach that increases physical, mental, emotional and spiritual strength, and connection. Yoga practice enhances innate immunity and mental health, so it can be used as complementary therapy in the COVID-19 treatment, namely the post-COVID-19 condition. In this article, we conducted a literature review on yoga and COVID-19, finding that an intervention comprising asana, pranayama, and meditation may be a strategy of choice for these patients' recovery. However, further studies are needed to show its effectiveness in this, still unknown, context.

Keywords: COVID-19; Mind-body therapy; Post-COVID-19 condition; Yoga.

Publication types

Review

MeSH terms

COVID-19 Drug Treatment
COVID-19* / therapy
Humans
Meditation*
Post-Acute COVID-19 Syndrome
Yoga* / psychology