Effect of Yogic Breathing on Accommodate Braille Version of Six-letter Cancellation Test in Students with Visual Impairment

CONTEXT: Attentional processes tend to be less well developed in the visually impaired, who require special training to develop them fully. Yogic breathing which alters the patterns of respiration has been shown to enhance attention skills. Letter cancellation tests are well-established tools to measure attention and attention span. Here, a modified Braille version of the six-letter cancellation test (SLCT) was used for students with visual impairment (VI). AIM: This study aimed to assess the immediate effects of Bhramari Pranayama (BhPr) and breath awareness (BA) on students with VI. METHODS: This study was a self-as-control study held on 2 consecutive days, on 19 participants (8 males, 11 females), with a mean age of 15.89 ± 1.59 years, randomized into two groups. On the 1(st) day, Group 1 performed 10 min breath awareness and Group 2 performed Bhramari; on the 2(nd) day, practices were reversed. Assessments used a SLCT specially adapted for the visually impaired before and after each session. RESULTS: The Braille letter cancellation test was successfully taken by 19 students. Scores significantly improved after both techniques for each student following practices on both days (P < 0.001). BhPr may have more effect on attention performance than BA as wrong scores significantly increased following BA (P < 0.05), but the increase in the score after Bhramari was not significant. CONCLUSIONS: Despite the small sample size improvement in attentional processes by both yoga breathing techniques was robust. Attentional skills were definitely enhanced. Long-term practice should be studied.