Development, validation, and feasibility of a tele-yoga module for patients with hypothyroidism

Background: Hypothyroidism is a deleterious non-communicable disease adversely affecting the metabolism, growth, and development of the individual. Yoga is a form of mind-body medicine that has shown a positive effect in managing the symptoms of hypothyroidism. This study aims to test the acceptability and viability of a Scientific Yoga Module (SYM) specific to hypothyroidism as a telehealth concept. Method: The study was conducted in three phases. The first phase was to design and develop a yoga module post a thorough review of ancient and modern literature, suitable for the tele-mode of teaching and learning perspective; the second phase was to validate the module by the subject matter experts whereby 40 experts from various fields of yoga science, yoga therapy, and yoga research reviewed and endorsed the yoga module; in the third phase, a feasibility test through tele-mode for hypothyroidism patients living in the local community who volunteered to take part in the study was conducted with a sample size of 15 patients, were selected based on the inclusion and exclusion criteria of the study. The live session of tele-yoga intervention was imparted for 60 minutes; 6 days a week; for 2 weeks by a certified yoga therapist with over five years of online teaching experience. A pretested questionnaire was used to assess the regularity and ease of practice; efficacy of the module; construct satisfaction and any adverse effects. Result: A total of 31 practices were suggested for hypothyroidism by the researchers. Out of which 24 practices were approved by the experts to be formulated as SYM with a content validity ratio (CVR) cut-off value ≥ 0.29. For the feasibility study, the mean age of the participants was 41.6±9.6 years. The result of the feasibility study was calculated in percentage whereby scores closer to 100 % determine better feasibility of the module practice. The feasibility questionnaire was divided into 3 sections and shows the average percentage scores obtained within each section as follows – (a) ‘Regularity and ease of practice’ (93.3 %); (b) ‘Efficacy of the module’ (91.1 %); (c) ‘Construct satisfaction’ (81.9 %). The overall feasibility of the module obtained an average of 88.7 % with no adverse event attributed to the study. Conclusion: To the best of our knowledge, this study is the first attempt that designs, validates, and tests the feasibility of SYM as an adjunct therapy suitable for telehealth for treating hypothyroidism along with conventional medicine and found to be effective, safe, and feasible. It recommends tele-yoga as a potential tool for digital health for long-term practices to lead a healthy life. This study may be used as a preliminary study to further conduct large randomized controlled trials as a telehealth concept.