Effects of Structured Breathing Exercise on Blood Pressure and Sleep Quality in Older Adults with Hypertension: A QuasiExperimental Study

Q: What is the clinical evidence from this study?

Population: Hypertension and poor sleep quality in older adults (n=60). Intervention: Structured breathing exercise vs. No intervention (control group). Primary outcome: Systolic blood pressure at Day 30 (mmHg) (p=≤0.01).

Q: What does this research mean for the field?

Structured daily breathing exercise significantly reduces systolic and diastolic blood pressure and improves sleep quality in older adults with hypertension. Novelty: ClaimNovelty.CONFIRMATORY. Consensus alignment: ConsensusAlignment.NEUTRAL.

doi:10.25258/ijddt.16.69s.150

October 15, 2026International Journal of Drug Delivery TechnologyOpen Access

Effects of Structured Breathing Exercise on Blood Pressure and Sleep Quality in Older Adults with Hypertension: A QuasiExperimental Study

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Key result

Structured breathing exercise lowers systolic BP by ~36 mmHg in older adults.

P≤0.01
n=60

Why the study?

Hypertension is a leading cause of morbidity and mortality among the elderly, and the effectiveness of breathing exercise on blood pressure and sleep quality needed to be assessed among hypertensive clients residing in an old age home at Coimbatore.

Does a 30-day structured daily breathing exercise program reduce blood pressure and improve sleep quality in older adults with hypertension residing in an old age home?

Key Points

To assess the effectiveness of a structured daily breathing exercise on blood pressure and sleep quality among older adults with hypertension living in an old age home.
Quasi-experimental time-series study involving 60 hypertensive individuals aged 60–80 years (30 experimental, 30 control) recruited via purposive sampling at an old age home in Coimbatore, India.
The experimental group practiced breathing exercises for 15 minutes daily for 30 days, while the control group received standard care.
Blood pressure was measured with a sphygmomanometer and sleep quality was evaluated using the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI) on Days 1, 10, 20, and 30, analyzed via repeated-measures ANOVA and t-tests.
In the experimental group, mean systolic BP decreased from 158.00±22.19 mmHg to 121.67±4.61 mmHg (F=76.253, P≤0.01) and diastolic BP decreased from 84.33±8.58 mmHg to 76.00±7.24 mmHg (F=6.583, P≤0.01).
Mean PSQI scores in the experimental group dropped from 9.90±2.25 to 2.50±0.73 (F=208.794, P≤0.01), with 100% achieving good sleep quality and 80.0% reaching normal BP by Day 30.
The control group showed no significant change in systolic BP (151.67±11.17 to 150.67±10.15 mmHg; F=1.183, P=0.318) or PSQI scores (7.47±2.06 to 7.67±2.14; F=3.082, P=0.090).

Structured PICO

Does a 30-day structured daily breathing exercise program reduce blood pressure and improve sleep quality in older adults with hypertension residing in an old age home?

P

Population

60 older adults aged 60–80 years (86.7% female) with hypertension and poor sleep quality residing in an old age home in India, free of serious comorbidities, followed for 30 days.

I

Intervention

Structured breathing exercise administered for 15 minutes daily (8:30–9:30 AM) for 30 consecutive days under investigator supervision, consisting of four sequential steps (5 minutes total per cycle, repeated 3 times): (i) 30-second breathing (4-second inhalation, 6-second exhalation, 6 cycles); (ii) equal breathing (nasal inhalation and exhalation counting to 4); (iii) diaphragmatic breathing (abdominal breathing with pursed-lip exhalation); and (iv) 4-7-8 technique (nasal inhalation for 4 counts, breath hold for 7 counts, oral exhalation for 8 counts).

C

Comparator

Control group receiving no breathing exercise intervention (both groups had high rates of irregular anti-hypertensive medication intake at baseline: 79.3% experimental, 62.9% control).

O

Outcome

Co-primary outcomes of blood pressure (systolic and diastolic BP measured with a standard mercury sphygmomanometer) and sleep quality (assessed using the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index [PSQI]) evaluated on Day 1, Day 10, Day 20, and Day 30.surrogate

Main Result

Absolute Event Rate: 121.67% vs 150.67%

p-value: p=≤0.01

A 30-day supervised structured breathing exercise program significantly reduced systolic and diastolic blood pressure and improved sleep quality in elderly hypertensive residents of an old age home.

Limitations

Single-centre study; findings may not be generalisable to all old age home populations.
Small sample size (n=60) due to time constraints.
Non-probability sampling technique limits randomisation.
Self-reported sleep data may introduce recall bias.

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Implication

Hypothesis-generating for breathing exercises in older hypertensives; leaves open confirmation in randomized trials.

Abstract

Background: Hypertension is a leading cause of morbidity and mortality among the elderly.Breathing exercise is a cost-effective, non-pharmacological intervention known to reduce blood pressure (BP) and improve sleep quality.Objective: To assess the effectiveness of breathing exercise on blood pressure and quality of sleep among hypertensive clients residing in a selected old age home at Coimbatore.Methods: A quasi-experimental time-series design was used.Sixty hypertensive clients (30 experimental, 30 control), aged 60-80 years, were selected by non-probability purposive sampling from Prabanja Amaithi Seva Ashramam, Coimbatore.Breathing exercise was administered for 15 minutes daily for 30 days to the experimental group.Blood pressure was assessed using a sphygmomanometer and sleep quality by the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI) on Day 1, 10, 20, and 30.Data were analysed using repeated-measures ANOVA, unpaired t-test, and chi-square test.The conceptual framework was based on Roy's Adaptation Model.Results: In the experimental group, mean systolic BP declined from 158.00±22.19mmHg (Day 1) to 121.67±4.61mmHg (Day 30) and mean diastolic BP from 84.33±8.58mmHg to 76.00±7.24mmHg, both statistically significant (F=76.253and F=6.583, P≤0.01).By Day 30, 80% of the experimental group achieved normal BP and 100% attained good sleep quality (mean PSQI: 9.90±2.25 to 2.50±0.73;F=208.794,P≤0.01).No significant changes were observed in the control group.No significant association was found between BP stages and selected demographic variables.Conclusion: Breathing exercise is a highly effective, low-cost non-pharmacological intervention for reducing blood pressure and improving sleep quality among elderly hypertensive clients in old age home settings.

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Cite This Study

A 2026 study studied Hypertension and poor sleep quality in older adults (n=60). Structured breathing exercise vs. No intervention (control group) was evaluated on Systolic blood pressure at Day 30 (mmHg) (p=≤0.01). Structured breathing exercise for 30 days significantly reduced mean systolic BP from 158.00 to 121.67 mmHg and improved mean PSQI sleep scores from 9.90 to 2.50 (both P≤0.01) in older adults.

synapsesocial.com/papers/6ae28e56cbadf70daf6c420a https://doi.org/10.25258/ijddt.16.69s.150

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Effects of Structured Breathing Exercise on Blood Pressure and Sleep Quality in Older Adults with Hypertension: A QuasiExperimental Study

Key Points

Structured PICO

Main Result

Limitations

Ask about this paper

Implication

Abstract

Discussion

Cite This Study

Effects of Structured Breathing Exercise on Blood Pressure and Sleep Quality in Older Adults with Hypertension: A QuasiExperimental Study

Key Points

Structured PICO

Main Result

Limitations

Ask about this paper

Implication

Abstract

Discussion

Cite This Study

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