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
. 2023 Feb 8:11:1074429.
doi: 10.3389/fped.2023.1074429. eCollection 2023.

Effects of physical activity on lung function and quality of life in asthmatic children: An updated systematic review and meta-analysis

Zenghui Jing  1 , Xingzhi Wang  1 , Panpan Zhang  1 , Jinli Huang  1 , Yuanyuan Jia  1 , Juan Zhang  1 , Huajie Wu  1 , Xin Sun  1
Affiliations
Review

Effects of physical activity on lung function and quality of life in asthmatic children: An updated systematic review and meta-analysis

Zenghui Jing et al. Front Pediatr. .

Abstract

Background and objectives: The benefits of physical activity (PA) for asthmatic children were increasingly recognized, and as the design of studies on PA and asthma has become more refined in recent years, the latest evidence needed to be updated. We performed this meta-analysis to synthesize the evidence available from the last 10 years to update the effects of PA in asthmatic children.

Methods: A systematic search was conducted in three databases, PubMed, Web of Science, and Cochrane Library. Randomized controlled trials were included, and two reviewers independently conducted the inclusion screening, data extraction, and bias assessment.

Results: A total of 9 studies were included in this review after 3,919 articles screened. PA significantly improved the forced vital capacity (FVC) (MD 7.62; 95% CI: 3.46 to 11.78; p < 0.001), and forced expiratory flow between 25% and 75% of forced vital capacity (FEF25-75) (MD 10.39; 95% CI: 2.96 to 17.82; p = 0.006) in lung function. There was no significant difference in forced expiratory volume in the first second (FEV1) (MD 3.17; 95% CI: -2.82 to 9.15; p = 0.30) and fractional exhaled nitric oxide (FeNO) (MD -1.74; 95% CI: -11.36 to 7.88; p = 0.72). Also, PA significantly improved the quality of life as assessed by the Pediatric Asthma Quality of Life Questionnaire (all items p < 0.05).

Conclusions: This review suggested that PA could improve FVC, FEF25-75, and quality of life in asthmatic children, but there was insufficient evidence of improvement in FEV1 and airway inflammation.

Systematic review registration: https://www.crd.york.ac.uk/PROSPERO/, identifier: CRD42022338984.

Keywords: asthma; children; lung function; physical activity; quality of life.

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
Flow diagram of studies from search to inclusion.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Risk of bias graph.
Figure 3
Figure 3
Risk of bias summary.
Figure 4
Figure 4
Forest plot: changes in lung function after PA.
Figure 5
Figure 5
Forest plot: changes in QoL after PA.
Figure 6
Figure 6
Forest plot: changes in FeNO after PA.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

Similar articles

See all similar articles

Cited by

References

    1. 2022 GINA MAIN REPORT. Global Strategy for Asthma Management and Prevention (2022). Available at: https://www.ginasthma.org/gina-reports (Accessed July 26, 2022).
    1. Haarman MG, van Hunsel F, de Vries TW. Adverse drug reactions of montelukast in children and adults. Pharmacol Res Perspect. (2017) 5(5):e00341. 10.1002/prp2.341 - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Price DB, Trudo F, Voorham J, Xu X, Kerkhof M, Ling Zhi Jie J, et al. Adverse outcomes from initiation of systemic corticosteroids for asthma: long-term observational study. J Asthma Allergy. (2018) 11:193–204. 10.2147/jaa.S176026 - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Heffler E, Madeira LNG, Ferrando M, Puggioni F, Racca F, Malvezzi L, et al. Inhaled corticosteroids safety and adverse effects in patients with asthma. J Allergy Clin Immunol Pract. (2018) 6(3):776–81. 10.1016/j.jaip.2018.01.025 - DOI - PubMed
    1. de Benedictis D, Bush A. Asthma in adolescence: is there any news? Pediatr Pulmonol. (2017) 52(1):129–38. 10.1002/ppul.23498 - DOI - PubMed

LinkOut - more resources