Effectiveness of Tai Chi on fibromyalgia patients: A meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials

Ching-An Cheng; Ya-Wen Chiu; Dean Wu; Yi-Chun Kuan; Sheng-Ni Chen; Ka-Wai Tam

doi:10.1016/j.ctim.2019.07.007

Effectiveness of Tai Chi on fibromyalgia patients: A meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials

Complement Ther Med. 2019 Oct:46:1-8. doi: 10.1016/j.ctim.2019.07.007. Epub 2019 Jul 10.

Authors

Ching-An Cheng¹, Ya-Wen Chiu², Dean Wu³, Yi-Chun Kuan⁴, Sheng-Ni Chen⁵, Ka-Wai Tam⁶

Affiliations

¹ School of Medicine, College of Medicine, Taipei Medical University, Taipei, Taiwan.
² Master Program in Global Health and Development, Health Policy and Care Research Center, College of Public Health, Taipei Medical University, Taipei, Taiwan.
³ Department of Neurology, Shuang Ho Hospital, Taipei Medical University, New Taipei City, Taiwan; Department of Neurology, School of Medicine, College of Medicine, Taipei Medical University, Taipei, Taiwan; Sleep Center, Shuang Ho Hospital, Taipei Medical University, New Taipei City, Taiwan.
⁴ Department of Neurology, Shuang Ho Hospital, Taipei Medical University, New Taipei City, Taiwan; Department of Neurology, School of Medicine, College of Medicine, Taipei Medical University, Taipei, Taiwan.
⁵ School of Medicine, College of Medicine, Taipei Medical University, Taipei, Taiwan. Electronic address: b101104048@tmu.edu.tw.
⁶ Center for Evidence-Based Health Care, Shuang Ho Hospital, Taipei Medical University, New Taipei City, Taiwan; Division of General Surgery, Department of Surgery, School of Medicine, College of Medicine, Taipei Medical University, Taipei, Taiwan; Division of General Surgery, Department of Surgery, Shuang Ho Hospital, Taipei Medical University, New Taipei City, Taiwan; Cochrane Taiwan, Taipei Medical University, Taipei, Taiwan. Electronic address: kelvintam@h.tmu.edu.tw.

PMID: 31519264
DOI: 10.1016/j.ctim.2019.07.007

Abstract

Objective: To identify empirical evidence on the effectiveness of Tai Chi in treating fibromyalgia (FM).

Method: We conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials (RCTs) to compare the effectiveness of Tai Chi and standard care or conventional therapeutic exercise in patients with FM. PubMed, Medline, and Physiotherapy Evidence Database were searched for relevant studies published before May 2019. Treatment effectiveness was evaluated using the fibromyalgia impact questionnaire (FIQ), and the total score, pain score, sleep quality index, fatigue, depression, and quality of life were assessing among the patients.

Results: Six RCTs with 657 patients were included. Results of our meta-analysis indicated that Tai Chi exerts significant positive effects on reducing the total FIQ score at 12-16 weeks (standard mean difference [SMD]: -0.61; 95% confidence interval [CI]: -0.90 to -0.31) and pain score (SMD: -0.88; 95% CI: -1.58 to -0.18), improving sleep quality (SMD: -0.57; 95% CI: -0.86 to -0.28), relieving fatigue (SMD: -0.92; 95% CI: -1.81 to -0.04), alleviating depression (SMD: -0.49; 95% CI: -0.97 to -0.01), and enhancing quality of life physically (SMD: 6.21; 95% CI: 3.18-9.24) and psychologically (SMD: 5.15; 95% CI: 1.50-8.81).

Conclusion: Tai Chi exerts significantly greater effects on patients with FM than standard care; therefore, we suggest that Tai Chi can be used as an alternative treatment. However, more large-scale, high-quality, and multicenter trials are required to provide stronger evidence on the effectiveness of Tai Chi, as an alternative to aerobic exercise, compared with conventional therapeutic exercise.

Keywords: Fibromyalgia; Fibromyalgia impact questionnaire; Meta-analysis; Symptom management; Tai Chi.

Publication types

Meta-Analysis
Systematic Review

MeSH terms

Exercise Therapy / methods
Fibromyalgia / therapy*
Humans
Quality of Life
Randomized Controlled Trials as Topic
Surveys and Questionnaires
Tai Ji / methods