Effect of Yoga as an Add-On Therapy for Negative and Cognitive Symptoms in Patients with Schizophrenia—A Randomized Controlled Trial
Keywords:
Cognitive deficit , Exercise , Negative symptomsAbstract
Background: People with schizophrenia usually present with deficits of several neurocognitive domains—including attention, processing speed, working memory, verbal and visual memory, and executive function. Pharmacological treatment options are limited for both negative and cognitive symptoms. However, several non-pharmacological interventions, like yoga, have been tried with evidence of effectiveness in providing measurable cognitive gains and improving negative symptoms. Objective: To find out the effect of yoga on negative and cognitive symptoms through a randomized controlled trial. Methods: A single-blind randomized controlled trial was conducted at a tertiary care hospital from June 2023 to June 2025. Patients were screened with the PANSS scale, and scores <75 were included for the study. The sample size was calculated as 104. Two groups were formed with 60 participants in each group randomly: Group A, with patients who were given yoga intervention along with standard pharmacotherapy, and Group B, with patients who continued with the standard pharmacotherapy (olanzapine up to 30mg). Baseline PGIBBD and CTT scores were obtained from each participant at baseline and after the yoga intervention. Results: After 3 months of intervention, Group A showed a marked and statistically significant reduction in symptom severity, with substantial improvements observed in both negative and cognitive symptom domains as measured by SANS scores, PGIBBD, and CTT scores. Conclusions: The concurrent improvement in both symptom severity and cognitive measures in the yoga intervention group addresses not only clinical symptoms but also associated cognitive deficits, which are critical determinants of functional outcome.
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