Prolonged Grief DisorderYogaNCT05026827
Iyengar Yoga for Prolonged Grief Disorder
A study testing Iyengar Yoga in people with Prolonged Grief Disorder, run by Medical College of Wisconsin at 1 site in United States.
Trial summary
Experiencing the death of a loved one is inevitable for older adults. Before the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, over 2.5 million people died annually in the United States, including 52,000 in Wisconsin alone, and COVID-19 has added to this toll. Read more about this study
- Who is it for?
- Ages 40 years and olderHealthy volunteers can take part
- Conditions the study is for
- Prolonged Grief Disorder
- What is being tested?
- Iyengar Yoga
- Could I receive a placebo?
- No, everyone receives an active treatment
- How many people
- 68 participants
- Where
- 1 siteUnited States
- Study dates
- 30 Aug 2021to Dec 2026
- Phase
- Interventional
Key requirements
Who can take part, as listed by the sponsor. Only the study team can confirm whether you are eligible, so take this list to your doctor.
- Ages 40 years and older
- All sexes
- Healthy volunteers accepted
- Adult, Older adult
Who may be able to join
- Male or female greater than or equal to 40 years of age
- Bereavement >6 months
- Score greater than or equal to 25 on the Inventory of Complicated Grief (ICG)
- Presence of PGD (subsyndromal and syndromal)
- Adequate visual and auditory acuity
Who cannot join
- Delirium/unstable medical conditions
- Lifetime history of neurological illnesses: seizures, stroke, dementia of any etiology, severe head injury, brain tumor or surgery
- Serious back, joint or neck injuries within the past 3 months
- Currently practicing yoga
- Gross structural abnormalities on T1-weighted images
- Lifetime history of the following psychiatric disorders: bipolar or psychotic disorders, including psychotic depression
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- Current alcohol/drug abuse or dependence
- Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) contraindications
- Acute suicidality
Trial locations and contacts
1 site in 1 country.
United States1 site
Medical College of Wisconsin
Wauwatosa, Wisconsin, 53226
About this study
Official title: Iyengar Yoga as a Probe of Prolonged Grief Disorder Neurobiology
Experiencing the death of a loved one is inevitable for older adults. Before the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, over 2.5 million people died annually in the United States, including 52,000 in Wisconsin alone, and COVID-19 has added to this toll. Each person who dies leaves an average of five grieving people behind. Most grieving older adults are resilient and recover their pre-loss functioning within one year. However, in about 10%, acute grief becomes protracted and debilitating, leading to the development of prolonged grief disorder (PGD), a clinically diagnosable mental health condition. PGD in older adults increases the risk for poorer medical, mental health, and cognitive outcomes; lower quality of life; disability; premature mortality; and suicide. Despite the magnitude of this problem, the neurobiology of PGD in older adults is poorly understood. By using Iyengar Yoga (IY) as a probe for PGD neurobiology, this pilot project aims to address this critical gap.
Read the detailed description
Our goal is to conduct a pilot study to examine in PGD the modulating effects of 10-week IY on circulating endocannabinoid and emotion processing brain circuit, and the associations between biological changes and clinical response.
- Conditions
- Prolonged Grief Disorder
- Being tested
- Iyengar Yoga, Socialization Control
- Medical subject headings
- Prolonged Grief Disorder
What participants receive
What participants receive. In a randomised study each person is assigned to one group by chance.
Iyengar YogaOther
Participation in Iyengar Yoga classes
Socialization ControlOther
Participation in socialization control group sessions
| Study group | Role | What they receive |
|---|---|---|
| Iyengar Yoga | Experimental | Participants will engage in 10 weekly IY classes Receives: Other: Iyengar Yoga |
| Socialization Control | Active comparator | Participants will engage in 10 weekly socialization control group sessions Receives: Other: Socialization Control |
| Healthy Comparison Group | No intervention | A group of participants will also be followed for 10 weeks |
What is being measured
The primary outcome is the main question the study is designed to answer.
Change in circulating endocannabinoid concentrations
Change in circulating endocannabinoids from baseline to post-intervention
Measured: 10 weeks
Secondary outcomes (2)
Change in neural activity measured using Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI)
Change in neural activity from baseline to post-intervention
Measured: 10 weeks
Inventory of Complicated Grief (ICG) scale score change
ICG score ranges from 0 to 76 (higher scores indicate worse outcome)
Measured: 10 weeks
Timeline
From the start of the study to its completion; the mark is today. Estimated dates are the sponsor’s plan.
- First posted30 Aug 2021
- Study start30 Aug 2021
- Primary completionDec 2026 (estimated)
- Study completionDec 2026 (estimated)
Resources
- Official record on ClinicalTrials.govThe registry entry this page is built from, with its full change history.
- Publications (1)Papers the sponsor has linked to this study.
- Other trials for Prolonged Grief DisorderStudies of the same condition, open and under way.
- What the trial phases meanHow a treatment moves from first tests in people to approval.
More details
For doctors and researchers: how the study is designed, who runs it, and its registry IDs.
Study design
- Study type
- Interventional
- Phase
- Phase N/A
- Primary purpose
- Other
- Allocation
- Randomised
- Intervention model
- Parallel groups
- Masking
- None (open label)
- Enrolment
- 68 participants (actual)
Sponsor and investigators
- Lead sponsor
- Medical College of Wisconsin
- Sponsor type
- University, hospital or other
- Responsible party
- Principal investigator, Joseph Goveas, Medical College of Wisconsin
IDs, dates and publications
- ClinicalTrials.gov ID
- NCT05026827
- Sponsor's protocol ID
- 00003864
- Acronym
- Yoga
- Status last verified
- Jan 2026
- First submitted
- 24 Aug 2021
- Last updated
- 9 Oct 2026
- Results posted
- No
- Data monitoring committee
- No
- FDA-regulated drug
- No
- FDA-regulated device
- No
- Individual data sharing
- No
Publications
Goveas JS, Hwang G, McAuliffe TL, Blair NP, Webber A, Claesges SA, Murphy LM, Chandler K, Reynolds CF, Hainsworth KR. Iyengar yoga and health education interventions for prolonged grief disorder in later life: feasibility of a randomized controlled pilot trial. Sci Rep. 2025 Dec 24;15(1):44604. doi: 10.1038/s41598-025-28397-5.
PubMed 41444366