Yoga in Children with Epilepsy: A Randomized Controlled Trial

Area of Science:

• Pediatric Neurology
• Complementary and Alternative Medicine
• Epileptology

Background:

• Epilepsy frequently originates in childhood, with a substantial portion of cases exhibiting resistance to conventional antiepileptic drugs.
• While yoga has demonstrated benefits in adult epilepsy management, its efficacy in pediatric populations remains under-researched.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the impact of yoga on seizure frequency and electroencephalogram (EEG) outcomes in children diagnosed with epilepsy.

Main Methods:

• A randomized controlled trial involving 20 children (aged 8-12 years) with epilepsy on antiepileptic drugs.
• The study group (10 children) received 10 one-hour yoga therapy sessions, while the control group (10 children) did not.
• Seizure frequency and EEG patterns were assessed at baseline, 3 months, and 6 months, with statistical analysis using standard tests (P<0.05 significance).

Main Results:

• The yoga group achieved complete seizure freedom at 3 and 6 months, contrasting with the control group where 4 and 3 children, respectively, still experienced seizures.
• EEG abnormalities significantly decreased in the yoga group, with only one child showing abnormal EEG at 6 months compared to seven in the control group (P = 0.020).

Conclusions:

• Yoga, when used as an adjunctive therapy, can lead to seizure freedom in children with epilepsy.
• The study indicates that yoga significantly improves EEG outcomes in pediatric epilepsy patients within a 6-month period.