Evidence map›Paper›PMID 27521348›Full record

SynthesisSchizophrenia bulletin2017

Aerobic Exercise Improves Cognitive Functioning in People With Schizophrenia: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.

Joseph Firth, Brendon Stubbs, Simon Rosenbaum, Davy Vancampfort, Berend Malchow, Felipe Schuch, Rebecca Elliott, Keith H Nuechterlein, Alison R Yung

Abstract readMeta-AnalysisSystematic Review
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Synthesis in Schizophrenia bulletin, 2017. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 232 papers, 16 of them syntheses that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
232citing papers in PubMed, 16 pooled it
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

232 citing papers in PubMed, 16 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.

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172 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.

4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

9 authors.

Joseph FirthInstitute of Brain, Behaviour and Mental Health, University of Manchester, Manchester, UK.
Brendon StubbsPhysiotherapy Department, South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust, London, UK.
Simon RosenbaumDepartment of Exercise Physiology, School of Medical Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, University of New South Wales, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.
Davy VancampfortKU Leuven Department of Rehabilitation Sciences, Leuven, Belgium.
Berend MalchowDepartment of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Ludwig-Maximilians-University, Munich, Germany.
Felipe SchuchHospital de Clínicas de Porto Alegre, Porto Alegre, Brazil.
Rebecca ElliottInstitute of Brain, Behaviour and Mental Health, University of Manchester, Manchester, UK.
Keith H NuechterleinDepartment of Psychiatry and Biobehavioral Sciences, David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA, Los Angeles, CA.
Alison R YungInstitute of Brain, Behaviour and Mental Health, University of Manchester, Manchester, UK.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Cognitive deficits are pervasive among people with schizophrenia and treatment options are limited. There has been an increased interest in the neurocognitive benefits of exercise, but a comprehensive evaluation of studies to date is lacking. We therefore conducted a meta-analysis of all controlled trials investigating the cognitive outcomes of exercise interventions in schizophrenia. Studies were identified from a systematic search across major electronic databases from inception to April 2016. Meta-analyses were used to calculate pooled effect sizes (Hedges g) and 95% CIs. We identified 10 eligible trials with cognitive outcome data for 385 patients with schizophrenia. Exercise significantly improved global cognition (g = 0.33, 95% CI = 0.13-0.53, P = .001) with no statistical heterogeneity (I2 = 0%). The effect size in the 7 studies which were randomized controlled trials was g = 0.43 (P < .001). Meta-regression analyses indicated that greater amounts of exercise are associated with larger improvements in global cognition (β = .005, P = .065). Interventions which were supervised by physical activity professionals were also more effective (g = 0.47, P < .001). Exercise significantly improved the cognitive domains of working memory (g = 0.39, P = .024, N = 7, n = 282), social cognition (g = 0.71, P = .002, N = 3, n = 81), and attention/vigilance (g = 0.66, P = .005, N = 3, n = 104). Effects on processing speed, verbal memory, visual memory and reasoning and problem solving were not significant. This meta-analysis provides evidence that exercise can improve cognitive functioning among people with schizophrenia, particularly from interventions using higher dosages of exercise. Given the challenges in improving cognition, and the wider health benefits of exercise, a greater focus on providing supervised exercise to people with schizophrenia is needed.

Indexed as

ExerciseCognitive DysfunctionHumansSchizophreniacognitionneurocognitionneurocognitivephysical activitypsychosis

Identifiers

PMID27521348
PMCPMC5464163

What OpenQuestion holds

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LicenceCC BY
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Registered trials

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.