The efficacy of yogic breathing exercise Bhramari pranayama in relieving symptoms of chronic rhinosinusitis

Abstract

Introduction: A multitude of modalities are available for the treatment of chronic rhinosinusitis, however, each has its side effects and compliance issues. Bhramari pranayama, which is a breathing exercise in the practice of yoga, offers an inexpensive and free from side effect modality in this regard. Objective: The objective of this study was to evaluate the efficacy of Bhramari pranayama in relieving the symptoms of chronic sinusitis. Methodology: A total of 60 patients with chronic sinusitis were randomly divided into two groups, one received conventional treatment of chronic sinusitis and the other group was in addition taught to practice yogic breathing exercise Bhramari pranayama. The patients were advised to practice this breathing exercise twice a day and were followed up at 1, 4, and 12 weeks using the Sino-Nasal Outcome Test (SNOT-22 score). Results: The mean SNOT-22 score in the group following the Bhramari pranayama breathing exercise using the ANOVA test improved from 39.13 ± 9.10 to 24.79 ± 8.31 ( P = 0.0002), this improvement was seen by the end of 4 weeks itself and continued until the 12 th week of assessment. Conclusion: Integrating regular practice of Bhramari pranayama along with the conventional management of chronic rhinosinusitis is more effective than conventional management alone.

Mind‐Body Therapies in the Management of Otolaryngologic Disease: A State‐of‐the‐Art Review of Randomized Controlled Trials

“…The interventions included breathing exercises (4), aromatherapy (2), biofeedback (2), meditation (2), yoga (2), hypnosis (1), guided imagery (1), laughter therapy (1), and relaxation therapy (1) (Tables 1 and 2). 18‐33 Intervention duration varied from 1 day to 6 months, and the comparative groups included conventional therapy, wait‐list therapy, no intervention, or another MBT.…”

“…Only 2 studies had participants blinded to their treatment assignment, 27,29 and 2 differing studies had blinded investigators delivering treatment 19,26 . Additionally, 5 studies blinded outcome assessors from treatment assignment 18,22,26,29,31 . Aside from DiStadio and Nair et al the other studies had complete follow‐up and adequately described their patients lost to follow‐up 24,30 .…”

“…19,26 Additionally, 5 studies blinded outcome assessors from treatment assignment. 18,22,26,29,31 Aside from DiStadio and Nair et al the other studies had complete follow-up and adequately described their patients lost to follow-up. 24,30 Furthermore, 14 studies had outcomes measured in a reliable way, and 8 studies underwent intention-to-treat analysis.…”

“…In total, 16 studies were included in the review. 1-3) [18][19][20][21][22][23][24][25][26][27][28][29][30][31][32][33] The 16 RCTs were published between 2003 and 2022 in either Asia (6), Europe (6), or North America (4). The conditions explored included HNC (2), facial palsy (2), tinnitus (2), allergic rhinitis (1), chronic rhinosinusitis (1) eustachian tube dysfunction (1), and unilateral vocal fold paralysis (1).…”

“…Bhramari Pranayama Yoga was found to significantly improve Sino-Nasal Outcome Test (SNOT-22) scores at 12 weeks in comparison to control in the management of CRS. 18 Both groups were treated with intranasal steroid spray and nasal irrigation. This yoga exercise involves humming and, as explained above, can improve movement of air within the sinuses and nasal passages and thereby open blocked ostia in sinusitis.…”