Yoga as a Treatment for Insomnia

Phase 2

Completed

• Conditions: Insomnia
• Interventions: Behavioral: Yoga, Relaxation Exercises, Sleep Hygiene

• Registration Number: NCT00033865
• Lead Sponsor: National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health (NCCIH)

Brief Summary

The purpose of this study is to evaluate the effectiveness of a daily, 8-week treatment for insomnia using yoga, relaxation exercises or sleep hygiene.

Detailed Description

Insomnia is a sleep disorder characterized by a chronic difficulty in initiating and maintaining sleep which has a relatively high prevalence and a significant socioeconomic cost. There is good evidence that cognitive and/or physiological arousal, associated with sustained sympathetic activation, is one of the underlying causes of insomnia. Relaxation treatments such as progressive relaxation and meditation which address the cognitive and somatic arousal associated with insomnia have been found to be effective. Yoga is a comprehensive discipline which includes physical exercises, postures, breathing techniques, and meditation, for the purpose of improving health and well being. Research studies have documented the effectiveness of yoga in reducing sympathetic activation and cognitive and somatic arousal and in the treatment of specific medical disorders. Although it has been used and recommended for the treatment of insomnia, its effectiveness has not been evaluated in a randomized, controlled study. The aim of this proposal is to evaluate the effectiveness of yoga, relaxation exercises or sleep hygiene in the treatment of chronic psychophysiological insomnia. A subjective measure of sleep onset latency will be derived from daily sleep diaries, and an objective measure will be drawn from polysomnographic recordings. Sleep onset latency will be evaluated before and after a two month treatment period in a total of 48 young men and women who have been carefully screened for psychiatric and medical disorders. Subjects will be assigned to a yoga, relaxation exercise, or sleep hygiene treatment group. We anticipate that yoga practice will prove to be an effective treatment for insomnia which will yield significant improvements in sleep onset latency. We also anticipate that these improvements will be maintained at long-term follow up evaluation.

Study Timeline

• Study Start: 2001-04
• Study First Submitted: 2002-04-11
• Study First Submitted QC: 2002-04-11
• Study First Posted: 2002-04-12
• Primary Completion: 2008-12
• Study Completion: 2008-12
• Status Verified: 2015-04
• Last Update Submitted: 2015-04-27
• Last Update Posted: 2015-04-28

Recruitment & Eligibility

• Status: COMPLETED
• Sex: All
• Target Recruitment: 48

Inclusion Criteria

Not provided

Exclusion Criteria

Not provided

Study & Design

• Study Type: INTERVENTIONAL
• Study Design: PARALLEL

Arm && Interventions

Group	Intervention	Description
1	Yoga, Relaxation Exercises, Sleep Hygiene	Yoga treatment for 8 weeks

Primary Outcome Measures

Name	Time	Method
Sleep onset latency	8 weeks

Trial Locations

Locations (1)

Brigham and Women's Hospital Division of Sleep Medicine; 🇺🇸 Boston, Massachusetts, United States