Author(s): Suchishrava Dubey and Dr. Bharat Verma

Abstract:
This meta-analysis aimed to examine the effectiveness of yoga interventions in improving spatial awareness in visually impaired children. A systematic search was conducted across multiple electronic databases, resulting in the inclusion of 10 studies with a total of 296 participants. The studies included in this meta-analysis had a range of designs, including randomized controlled trials, quasi-experimental studies, and single-group pre-post studies. The primary outcome measure in this meta-analysis was spatial awareness, which was assessed using a variety of tools, including the Line Orientation Test, the Mental Rotation Test and the Spatial Orientation Memory Test. The results of the meta-analysis indicated that yoga interventions had a significant effect on improving spatial awareness in visually impaired children (standardized mean difference [SMD] = 0.53, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 0.33 to 0.74, p<0.001). The heterogeneity of the studies was moderate (I^2 = 51.2%, p = 0.02), suggesting that there was variability in the effect size across studies. Subgroup analyses revealed that the effect of yoga intervention on spatial awareness was greater for studies with larger sample sizes (SMD = 0.76, 95% CI = 0.54 to 0.99, p<0.001), studies with longer intervention durations (SMD = 0.64, 95% CI = 0.41 to 0.87, p<0.001) and studies with blinded assessors (SMD = 0.61, 95% CI = 0.35 to 0.87, p<0.001). Furthermore, sensitivity analyses showed that the results of the meta-analysis were robust to the exclusion of any individual study, indicating that the findings were not driven by any single study. Publication bias was assessed using a funnel plot and Egger's test, which did not reveal any significant evidence of publication bias. In conclusion, this meta-analysis provides evidence that yoga interventions can improve spatial awareness in visually impaired children. The findings suggest that yoga interventions could be integrated into existing rehabilitation programs for visually impaired children.

DOI: 10.22271/kheljournal.2023.v10.i3c.2937

Pages: 150-155  |  463 Views  155 Downloads

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