Yoga Nidra and Pain: A between-, within-Group Meta-Analysis and Dose Response Meta-Regression

Area of Science:

• Pain Management
• Complementary Medicine
• Mind-Body Interventions

Background:

• Chronic and acute pain pose a significant global health burden.
• Conventional pain treatments face limitations like side effects and dependency.
• Mind-body approaches, including Yoga nidra (YGN), are gaining attention for pain management.

Purpose of the Study:

• To systematically review and meta-analyze the effects of Yoga nidra on pain outcomes.
• To evaluate the efficacy of YGN as a noninvasive intervention for pain relief.

Main Methods:

• Conducted a systematic literature search across seven databases and one trial database.
• Included quantitative studies assessing YGN's impact on pain.
• Evaluated study quality using the Cochrane Risk of Bias tool and modified Downs and Black checklist.
• Performed random-effects meta-analyses to determine pooled effect sizes.

Main Results:

• Twelve studies with 1,176 participants were analyzed.
• YGN significantly reduced pain compared to passive comparators (Hedge's g: -2.05, p = 0.01).
• No significant pain reduction was observed when compared to active comparators (g: -0.31, p = 0.53).
• Significant within-group pain reduction was found following YGN intervention (g: -2.01, p < 0.001).
• No significant dose-response relationship was identified across intervention durations.

Conclusions:

• Yoga nidra demonstrates potential for pain reduction, particularly against passive control conditions.
• Within-group analyses show notable improvements in pain intensity after YGN.
• The low methodological quality of included studies warrants cautious interpretation of findings.
• Further high-quality, standardized research is essential to confirm YGN's efficacy as a clinical pain management tool.