SynthesisFrontiers in psychology2025
Optimal exercise modality and dose for alleviating depressive symptoms in postmenopausal women: a systematic review and network meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials.
Synthesis in Frontiers in psychology, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 1 paper, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
What it found
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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.
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Who cites it
1 citing paper in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it.
- Effects of exercise interventions on depressive symptoms in perimenopausal women in China: a systematic review and meta-analysis.Frontiers in psychology · 2026Pooled it
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
4 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
Objective: Although physical exercise is widely recognized as an effective non-pharmacological intervention for depressive symptoms, the relative efficacy of different exercise modalities and the optimal dose for postmenopausal women remain unclear. This study aimed to determine the optimal exercise modality and dose for alleviating depressive symptoms in postmenopausal women through a systematic review and network meta-analysis (NMA), incorporating a model-based network meta-analysis (MBNMA) for dose-response relationships. Methods: Five major electronic databases (Web of Science, Cochrane Library, PubMed, EBSCO, and Embase) were searched for randomized controlled trials (RCTs) investigating the effects of exercise interventions on depressive symptoms in postmenopausal women. The risk of bias in included studies was assessed using the Cochrane Risk of Bias 2 (RoB 2) tool. The NMA and dose-response MBNMA were conducted using R software. Results: A total of 33 RCTs involving 2,607 participants were included. The NMA results showed that all four exercise modalities-resistance exercise (RE), mind-body exercise (MBE), aerobic exercise (AE), and combined exercise (CBE)-significantly alleviated depressive symptoms compared to the control group: RE (SMD = -0.90, 95% CI: -1.61 to -0.20), MBE (SMD = -0.75, 95% CI: -1.07 to -0.43), AE (SMD = -0.67, 95% CI: -0.93 to -0.42), and CBE (SMD = -0.63, 95% CI: -1.19 to -0.06). P-score rankings suggested that RE ( Conclusion: Physical exercise is a highly effective intervention for alleviating depressive symptoms in postmenopausal women, with resistance and mind-body exercises demonstrating the greatest therapeutic potential. The antidepressant effect of exercise follows a U-shaped dose-response relationship, with an optimal dose of approximately 750 METs-min/week. These findings provide robust evidence for clinicians to move beyond generic recommendations and to develop precise, individualized exercise prescriptions tailored to the specific needs and conditions of their patients. Systematic review registration: PROSPERO, identifier (CRD420251208430).
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