Benefits of Yoga in Myocardial Infarction: Cardiac Autonomic Functions in Two Groups of Myocardial Infarction Patients

A randomized trial done on two groups of post myocardial infarction patients was conducted in the Department of Physiology at Vardhaman Mahavir Medical College and Safdarjung hospital. The two groups were allocated to the following regimen : 1) On pharmcotherapy alone , 2) On yoga , lifestyle modification and pharmacotherapy. A one year follow up on these patients in which autonomic function tests , lipid profile and subjective well being parameters were measured before and after intervention yielded significantly better results in the group on yoga and lifestyle modification. Further studies are recommended for studying the beneficial effects of yoga and lifestyle modification on a larger Indian population.