Yoga and epilepsy: What do patients perceive?

CONTEXT: Benefit of yoga therapy in the management of epilepsy is emerging. However, there is no data available about the knowledge, attitude and practice (KAP) of yoga amongst people living with epilepsy (PLWE). AIMS: This study was designed to explore the KAP about yoga among PLWE. SETTINGS AND DESIGN: The study was conducted on 300 PLWE attending the neurology out-patient services of a tertiary care hospital. METHODOLOGY: Three hundred PLWE (male:female=173:127; age: 31.6±12.4 years) attending the neurology out-patient services of a neuropsychiatry hospital were administered a pre-tested KAP questionnaire. RESULTS: About 87.4% were on regular anti-epileptic drugs and half (50.3%) on monotherapy. Use of complementary and alternative medicine by the respondents included: Ayurveda (26.7%), yoga (25.6%) and homeopathy (16.3%) or folk medicine (29.1%). Nearly 33.7% of the respondents reported that yoga is beneficial in managing epilepsy. More than half the respondents (54.8%) were willing to practice yoga. Those who practiced yoga opined that regular practice of yoga might reduce dosage of medication (62.8%), their side effects (51.3%) and frequency of seizures (54.5%). Majority of the patients were willing to practice yoga, if yoga services were offered. CONCLUSION: The gaps in KAP identified in this study point to the need for more systematic effort to bring about awareness of yoga in patients with epilepsy.