Breathing exercises and pranayamas to decrease perceived exertion during breath-holding while locked-down due to COVID-19 online randomized study.
Mayank Shukla, Diksha Chauhan, Ritu Raj
PMID 33074110WHAT IT FOUND
After one week in adults without pulmonary conditions, breath-holding time rose in all four groups, but the groups differed overall only for perceived exertion change.
Alternate-nostril and diaphragmatic breathing reduced exertion; alternate-nostril had the largest reduction.
Key findings
01After one week, breath-holding time increased in all four groups.
02Only alternate-nostril breathing and diaphragmatic breathing decreased perceived exertion.
03Overall group comparisons found differences only for change in perceived exertion, with the maximum reduction in alternate-nostril breathing.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for PTs
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What it does not show
The participants were adults without pulmonary conditions, smoking, chest wall deformities or obesity, not patients with breathing disease. The study analysed 60 of 75 included participants, with 10 dropouts and 5 technical or non-compliance problems. The study compared four active practices and did not report an untreated or placebo control group. The intervention was delivered and recorded online by video, and the authors note that face-to-face teaching would have been better. The methods describe two sessions per day in one place and three sessions twice a day in another, so the exact daily dose is unclear. The outcomes were breath-holding time and perceived exertion, not clinical health outcomes.
Declared interests
No financial support, copyright/patent/royalty or competing interests were declared.
The easy way to misread this
Do not conclude that these practices improve health outcomes in patients with pulmonary conditions. The study measured only short-term breath-holding time and perceived exertion in adults without pulmonary conditions.