A comprehensive review on mind-body interventions and its application in various neurological disorders was recently published in Neurology. The authors Wahbeh, Elas and Oken searched Medline and PsychoInfo databases to identify clinical trials, reviews and published evidence on mind-body therapies and neurological diseases.
Meditation, relaxation, breathing exercises, yoga, tai-chi, qigong, hypnosis and biofeedback are some of the mind-body interventions that have been used in various neurological conditions like general pain, back and neck pain, carpel tunnel syndrome, headaches (migraine and tension), fibromyalgia, multiple sclerosis, epilepsy, neuromuscular diseases, stroke, falls with aging, Parkinson disease, stroke and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).
The authors do a good job in shifting through all the data to try to identify the effectiveness of mind-body interventions. As they point out in their discussion , many patients as many as 62% use complementary and alternative medicine therapies (CAM). Some with and many without the knowledge of their physicians. One of the reason why CAM therapies are popular is that they are relatively easy to implement, cheap (though many patients have to pay out of their pocket. Some insurance companies shall reimburse if you have a letter from your doctor) and more importantly as the authors point out it makes the patients feel empowered. They feel that they are in control of some of the decision making in their disease process and treatment. Moreover it gives a sense of general well being.
The authors righly point out that is difficult to scientifically judge whether these interventions are all effective. The reason for this is that many of the studies included small number of subjects and some of them did not have a control group. Moreover it is hard to blind these studies so as to avoid a placebo effect. Like suppose I want to study whether acupuncture is effective for lower back pain. One group I give acupuncture. Ideally I should have a control, a group which receives sham acupuncture so as to null the placebo effect. Now this is difficult to implement.
Th authors in their review conclude that there are several neurological conditions where the evidence in favor of mind-body therapies is quite strong such as migraine headaches. In other conditions the evidence is limited due to small clincial trials and inadequate control group.
It is reasonable to conclude that CAM therapies like yoga, tai-chi and qigong improve balance in the elderly and decrease the incidence of falls. Moreover they give a sense of well being and happiness. Meditation exercises whether it is mindfulness meditation, transcendental meditation or concentration meditation with the repetition of a word like Om or a mantra
“Hare Krishna Hare Krishna
Krishna Krishna Hare Hare
Hare Rama Hare Rama
Rama Rama Hare Hare”
all help in relaxation and reducing stress. This may decrease blood pressure and reduce the incidence of strokes and heart attacks. Brain changes have been observes during meditation in EEG and imaging studies and there is evidence that these exercises have wide spread effects on the endocrine and immune systems as well neurotransmitters. Hatha yoga may help in improving mobility and balance and thus decreasing fall risk. As the authors point out righly Bikram yoga which is carried out in very hot temperatures is likely not good for patients with MS, as it may worsen their weakness. This is called Uhthoff phenomena.
There is also some evidence to suggest benefits of these interventions in patients who have chronic lower back and neck pain, those with fibromyalgia, osteoarthritis as well as carpel tunnel syndrome (some studies suggest benefit while others do not).
My advise to patients who want to try out CAM therapies for various neurological conditions is to take their doctors into confidence. It is likely that some of these therapies when used along with allopathic medicines shall give added benefits and likely make you feel better. Like with any other therapy one must find a knowledgeable practitioner who knows what he or she is doing.
Then one can truly reap the benefits of these ancient therapies.
Personal Regards,
Nitin Sethi, MD
Braindisease's Weblog 