Researchers from Seattle Children's Hospital ran a pilot study designed to assess the impact of individualized yoga treatment on adolescents receiving outpatient care for diagnosed eating disorders (anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa, eating disorder not otherwise specified).

A total of 50 girls and 4 boys, aged 11-21 years, were randomized to an 8-week trial of standard care (n = 27) vs. individualized yoga therapy (n = 26) plus standard care. Standard care consisted of an appointment every other week with a physician and/or dietician. (This arm was offered yoga after completion of the study as an incentive to maintain participation.)

Researchers from the Division of Child Psychiatry at North Shore-Long Island Jewish Hospital evaluated the effectiveness of teaching guided imagery to acutely injured pediatric patients in the PICU, as compared to a one-on-one inquiry about pain-related experiences.
 
Forty-four hospitalized children and adolescents were assigned to one of two intervention groups, the imagery arm (N = 24) or the inquiry arm (N = 20).  Pain was assessed pre- and post-intervention using the Wong-Baker Faces Pain Rating Scale and a 0-10 Likert pain rating scale, while the Pediatric Trauma Score was given to assess the severity of each child's injuries.

Researchers from Maharishi Ayurveda Health Centre in Lillehammer, Norway, performed a pilot study on 31 women with fibromyalgia, to see whether Ayurvedic treatment improved their condition.

Subjects each received an individually designed Maharishi Vedic physiological purification therapy, personal advice on daily routines and diet (including food intolerance), based on Ayurvedic principles. In addition, four agreed to instruction in TM (Transcendental Meditation) for help with stress, pain management and personal development. Ayurvedic herbal food products were provided for home treatment.

Pioneer guided imagery researchers from Ohio State University College of Medicine in Columbus, Ohio, examined whether the practice of hatha yoga can reduce stress responses, as indicated by measurable inflammatory and endocrine shifts in the body immediately after a session.  This study compares the reactions of novice and expert yoga practitioners before, during, and after a restorative hatha yoga session, as compared to two control conditions.

Researchers from the Department of Neurology at Rambam Hospital in Haifa, Israel examined whether a Parkinson’s Disease (PD) tremor, known to worsen with stress, could improve with what they refer to as “relaxation guided imagery” (RGI) and calming music.

Twenty PD patients with moderate to severe tremor participated in sessions where relaxation techniques were implemented. Tremor was objectively monitored using an accelerometer.

Researchers from the Department of Mental Health at the Naval Medical Center in San Diego compared the effectiveness of Exposure Therapy (ET) to Virtual Reality (VR) in the treatment of combat-related posttraumatic stress in theater at Camp Fallujah in Iraq.

This case series documents the first use of VR-based therapy in the treatment of PTSD in a combat theater.  Results of therapy are being reported from a mental health clinic in Camp Fallujah, Iraq.

Combat PTSD constituted a relatively small percentage of overall mental health patients seen. Those who did present with PTSD were offered either VR-based ET or traditional ET.  

Editorial comment:
 
Some of you know I’ve always cast a wary eye on Virtual Reality as a technique, mainly because its cost makes it unrealistic for most people and situations; and because instead of directing focus inward, the way hypnosis and guided imagery do, to increase internal locus of control and empowerment for self-driven change, it takes end-users’ attention outward, so that they must depend on the VR machinery to create sensation.
 
Except for the relative few who are congenitally incapable of doing self-directed imagery for relaxation, this seems like a self-defeating, redundant, expensive option.  These researchers deserve great praise for their integrity. They published a study where the findings ran counter to their hopes and wishes for VR.

Researchers from Indiana University School of Nursing in Indianapolis looked at whether guided imagery and relaxation was a useful self-management strategy for osteoarthritis, and whether it could help control symptoms and decrease the use of medication. Specifically, they tested whether it could reduce pain, improve mobility and reduce medication use.
 
Thirty older adults were randomly assigned to participate in the 4-month trial by using either GIR or a sham intervention, planned relaxation.

Repeated-measures analysis of variance revealed that, compared with those who used the sham intervention, participants who used GIR had a significant reduction in pain from baseline to month 4 and significant improvement in mobility from baseline to month 2. 

Researchers from Brainclinics Diagnostics in Nijmegen, The Netherlands, conducted a meta-analysis of the efficacy of neurofeedback on ADHD.

Both prospective controlled studies and studies employing a pre- and post-design found large effect sizes for neurofeedback on impulsivity and inattention and a medium impact on hyperactivity.

Randomized studies demonstrated a lower effect size for hyperactivity, suggesting that hyperactivity is probably more sensitive to nonspecific treatment factors.

Researchers from the Department of Psychosomatic Medicine at Technische Universitaet Muenchen in Munich, Germany, investigated the immunological impact of relaxation and imagery on asthma by measuring the effects these techniques have on serum IgE in adult patients with dust mite allergic asthma in a randomized, controlled trial.