Chronic Obstr Pulm Dis. 2025 Oct 29. doi: 10.15326/jcopdf.2025.0657. Online ahead of print.
ABSTRACT
OBJECTIVES: This meta-analysis assessed the effects of aerobic exercise on the function, prognosis, quality of life, and psychological outcome of patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD).
METHODS: The Cochrane Library, Scopus, PubMed, and Web of Science were searched from the inception to June 20, 2025, to identify eligible studies. A random-effects model was employed for meta-analysis.
RESULTS: Twenty randomized controlled trials with 1003 participants were included. The risk of bias was high in most studies, particularly because blinding was not feasible. For most outcomes, we observed high heterogeneity among studies. The meta-analysis indicated that compared to the control group, patients with COPD undergoing exercise training had a significantly increased 6MWT (WMD 42.44 m), FEV1 (WMD 0.08 L), FEV1/FVC (WMD 5.42%), and SpO2 (WMD 1.56%), which suggests that aerobic exercise can improve the functional capacity and respiratory reserve of patients with COPD. On the other hand, the results revealed that compared to the control group, aerobic exercise markedly decreased the SGRQ symptom score (SMD -1.13), SGRQ total score (SMD -1.44), mMRC score for dyspnea (SMD -0.81), and HADS-anxiety score (SMD -1.17), but its effect on the HADS-depression score (SMD -0.25) did not meet the threshold of statistical significance. Subgroup analysis unveiled that aerobic exercise can offer greater benefits in the long term, and those with FEV1 and FEV1/FVC of more than 50% can benefit more from aerobic exercise.
CONCLUSION: Aerobic exercise may improve the functional capacity, symptoms, respiratory reserve, quality of life, and psychological outcomes of patients with COPD.
PMID:41212727 | DOI:10.15326/jcopdf.2025.0657
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