Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Review
. 2022 Oct 10:14:935925.
doi: 10.3389/fnagi.2022.935925. eCollection 2022.

The effect and mechanism of traditional Chinese exercise for chronic low back pain in middle-aged and elderly patients: A systematic review

Xue-Qiang Wang  1   2   3 , Huan-Yu Xiong  3 , Shu-Hao Du  3 , Qi-Hao Yang  3 , Li Hu  1   2
Affiliations
Review

The effect and mechanism of traditional Chinese exercise for chronic low back pain in middle-aged and elderly patients: A systematic review

Xue-Qiang Wang et al. Front Aging Neurosci. .

Abstract

Background: Increasing lines of evidence indicate that traditional Chinese exercise (TCE) has potential benefits in improving chronic low back pain (CLBP) symptoms. To assess the clinical efficacy of TCE in the treatment of CLBP, we performed a systematic review of existing randomized controlled trials (RCTs) of CLBP and summarized the neural mechanisms underlying TCE in the treatment of CLBP.

Methods: A systematic search was conducted in four electronic databases: PubMed, Embase, the Cochrane Library, and EBSCO from January 1991 to March 2022. The quality of all included RCTs was evaluated by the Physiotherapy Evidence Database Scale (PEDro). The primary outcomes included pain severity and pain-related disability.

Results: A total of 11 RCTs with 1,256 middle-aged and elderly patients with CLBP were included. The quality of all 11 included RCTs ranged from moderate to high according to PEDro. Results suggested that TCE could considerably reduce pain intensity in patients with CLBP. Overall, most studies did not find any difference in secondary outcomes (quality of life, depression, and sleep quality).

Conclusion: The neurophysiological mechanism of TCE for treating CLBP could be linked to meditation and breathing, posture control, strength and flexibility training, and regulation of pain-related brain networks. Our systematic review showed that TCE appears to be effective in alleviating pain in patients with CLBP.

Keywords: Qigong; Tai Chi; chronic low back pain; elderly people; traditional Chinese exercise.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest.

Figures

FIGURE 1
FIGURE 1
(A) A PRISMA flow diagram of the literature screening and selection processes. (B) Distribution of countries. (C) Quality assessment of PEDro.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Arnstein P. (2010). Balancing analgesic efficacy with safety concerns in the older patient. Pain Manag. Nurs. 11(Suppl. 2) S11–S22. 10.1016/j.pmn.2010.03.003 - DOI - PubMed
    1. Barthas F., Sellmeijer J., Hugel S., Waltisperger E., Barrot M., Yalcin I. (2015). The anterior cingulate cortex is a critical hub for pain-induced depression. Biol. Psychiatry 77 236–245. 10.1016/j.biopsych.2014.08.004 - DOI - PubMed
    1. Bernstein I. A., Malik Q., Carville S., Ward S. (2017). Low back pain and sciatica: Summary of NICE guidance. BMJ 356:i6748. 10.1136/bmj.i6748 - DOI - PubMed
    1. Blodt S., Pach D., Kaster T., Ludtke R., Icke K., Reisshauer A., et al. (2015). Qigong versus exercise therapy for chronic low back pain in adults–a randomized controlled non-inferiority trial. Eur. J. Pain 19 123–131. 10.1002/ejp.529 - DOI - PubMed
    1. Chou R., Turner J. A., Devine E. B., Hansen R. N., Sullivan S. D., Blazina I., et al. (2015). The effectiveness and risks of long-term opioid therapy for chronic pain: A systematic review for a National Institutes of Health Pathways to Prevention Workshop. Ann. Intern. Med. 162 276–286. 10.7326/M14-2559 - DOI - PubMed