Yoga versus iPad active control for fatigue in paediatric cancer therapy: a randomised controlled trial.

OBJECTIVES: The primary objective was to determine if individualised yoga for hospitalised children receiving intensive chemotherapy was associated with less fatigue using the Pediatric Quality of Life Inventory Multidimensional Fatigue Scale (PedsQL MFS) compared with iPad control.

METHODS: This was a multicentre randomised controlled trial of individualised yoga in paediatric patients aged 8-18 years who were inpatients receiving intensive chemotherapy for leukaemia, lymphoma or haematopoietic cell transplantation. Participants were randomised to yoga or iPad groups; allocated programme was delivered individually by trained yoga instructors 5 days/week for 21 days. The primary outcome was day 21 guardian-reported general fatigue using the PedsQL MFS. Secondary outcomes included day 21 PedsQL sleep/rest and cognitive fatigue, Fatigue Scale and PedsQL Acute Cancer Module, and systemic opioid administration.

RESULTS: The study was closed early for poor accrual when 125/210 planned participants had been enrolled and randomised to yoga (n=62) or iPad (n=63). Guardian-reported PedsQL MFS general fatigue scores on day 21 were not significantly different between groups (adjusted difference 7.2, 95% CI -2.6 to 16.9) in favour of yoga. However, day 21 cognitive fatigue (adjusted difference 9.0, 95% CI 0.9 to 17.1), cognitive problems (adjusted difference 11.2, 95% CI 3.5 to 19.0) and communication (adjusted difference 10.6, 95% CI 0.8 to 20.4) were significantly better in the yoga compared with the iPad group. There were no significant differences in the other secondary outcomes including PedsQL sleep/rest fatigue (adjusted difference 4.9, 95% CI -3.5 to 13.3).

CONCLUSIONS: The effect of individualised yoga on general fatigue is uncertain in paediatric patients receiving intensive chemotherapy. However, yoga significantly improved cognitive fatigue and cognitive problems.

TRIAL REGISTRATION NUMBER: NCT02134782.