Efficacy of yoga as an adjunct in cardiac rehabilitation in coronary artery disease patients: A systematic review and meta-analysis

Coronary artery disease (CAD) is a significant worldwide health problem, and coronary artery bypass graft surgery is a prominent treatment option. Stress, worry, and depression are common psychological variables among CAD patients, and they might have a negative impact on healing and long-term results. This systematic review and meta-analysis sought to determine the efficacy of yoga as an addition to cardiac rehabilitation in improving psychological and physiological outcomes in CAD patients. From the beginning until the end of December 2024, four electronic databases were thoroughly searched. We considered studies comparing persons aged ≥18 years with CAD who received yoga-based therapies to conventional care or control circumstances. The primary objectives were anxiety, stress, depression, quality of life (QoL), and tobacco cessation, whereas the secondary outcomes were blood pressure and lipid profiles. The study comprised eleven papers comprising 4,489 people, five of which matched the criteria for meta-analysis. The data show that yoga therapies considerably improved QoL, with modest improvements in psychological outcomes such as stress, anxiety, and depression, but the effects were heterogenous. The evidence for secondary physiological outcomes revealed positive trends. The overall quality of evidence varied from moderate to excellent. In conclusion, yoga seems to be a viable supplementary strategy in cardiac rehabilitation, especially for increasing QoL in CAD patients. However, more high-quality, standardized studies are required to increase the evidence base and guide clinical practice.