Buteyko breathing showed no clear advantage after acute coronary syndrome
Sleep quality, fatigue and oxygen saturation improved within both breathing groups, but neither approach showed a statistically significant advantage over the other.
Based on the published abstract. The full paper may contain additional methods, results and limitations.
The 30-second takeaway
This trial did not find evidence that Buteyko breathing improved sleep quality, fatigue or oxygen saturation more than diaphragmatic breathing in people with acute coronary syndrome. Both groups received routine care and improved over time. Those within-group improvements cannot show that Buteyko breathing caused the changes or added a specific benefit.
The abstract lists 92 adults in its methods but 90 randomized patients in its results. It also does not show whether changes persisted beyond the intervention.
What researchers found
PSQI sleep-quality score difference
Buteyko versus diaphragmatic breathing after 6 weeks; mean difference, not statistically significant.
Why the comparator matters
The control group practiced another breathing technique rather than receiving routine care alone. The trial therefore addresses the relative effects of these approaches, while leaving their added value over routine care alone unresolved.
Interpreting the null result
The reported between-group effects were small and statistically nonsignificant. This does not prove equivalence. Oxygen saturation was a measured physiological outcome; the abstract does not report whether either approach changed subsequent cardiac events.
The original publication
Effects of the Buteyko breathing technique on sleep quality, fatigue, and oxygen saturation in patients with acute coronary syndrome: a randomized controlled trial.
Safarabadi M, Farsani SM, Mohammadtalebi H et al.
BMC Cardiovasc Disord · 2026
- PubMed ID
- 41699486
- Record checked
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