Yoga Module Development and Validation for Sickle Cell Disease

Sickle cell disease (SCD) is a genetic blood disorder that affects the shape and function of red blood cells (RBCs), which can lead to several health problems affecting the quality of life. SCD can be treated with certain expensive treatments such as RBC transfusion, hydroxyurea, stem cell transplantation, gene therapy, or bone marrow transplant. However, some of the most common symptoms such as pain, anxiety, and stress can also be alleviated with alternative therapies like yoga. In light of this, there is a need for the development of a specific yoga module (YM) for SCD that can complement the current therapies.

To develop and validate a YM for SCD.

Concise literature reports on yoga practices used for varied symptoms/comorbidities associated with SCD were compiled and presented to focus groups. Based on the presented report and personal experience, the focus group created a preliminary version of the module. The preliminary module was further refined based on content validity ratio (CVR) following module validation by 33 yoga experts.

One hour ten minutes module developed by the focus group had in total 27 practices including, loosening exercises, asanas, pranayama, relaxation techniques, and meditation. After validation by the experts, 21 practices with a CVR ≥ 0.33 were retained. The predominant reason for excluding 12 practices was intensity, which may have some adverse effect on sickle cell comorbidities.

The module developed is the first validated module for SCD.