At home yoga treatment for adult students with jaw muscle pain

Participants were blinded and randomly assigned into one of two interventions, either a ‘yoga inclusive management program’ - Group A or an ‘active control standard care program’ - Group B. All participants were offered Standard self-care management for myofascial pain. This was done by a discussion on self-care management strategies and by providing an email copy of ‘Immediate management of Temporomandibular disorders’ document (Table 1). Participants in Group A were provided a yoga mat and taught in groups (no more than 5) simple yoga activities to be performed daily for 30 minutes. The group then demonstrated to the instructor standardised activities which included 15 minutes of active physical yoga exercises, 15 minutes of breathing exercises and meditation. The activities included an initial warm-up exercise; a short sequence of 9 to 12 movements (sun salutation); 4 sustained yoga postures; breathing exercises; and a brief period of focused attention. A summary of exercise routines for each yoga session is presented in tables 2, 3 and 4. Further details and particulars of the yoga exercises are presented in appendix 1. Yoga sessions were conducted by a trained yoga instructor (with minimum 3 years’ experience) in a lecture room at 3 locations in Sydney: at the Westmead Centre for Oral Health (WCOH), at the Sydney Dental Hospital (SDH), and at The University of Sydney Camperdown Campus (USYD). Each participant was seen twice weekly by a researcher for 30 minutes and were instructed and reviewed on the daily activities. Participant adherence with the treatment was assessed with a self-report daily diary (appendix 3). Participants were emailed a copy of the session routines outlining the sequence of yoga exercises after they attended the sessions for weeks 1, 2, 3 and 4. This was done to assist them in practicing the yoga exercise at home. The total duration of this yoga intervention was 28 days.