Effects of A 12-week Tai Chi Exercise on Kidney Disease Patients
February 21, 2017 - Previous studies have shown that exercise training in patients with end-stage renal disease could improve their physical functioning and quality of life. Nevertheless, few studies have evaluated the effects of Tai Chi exercise in patients on hemodialysis.
A recent study conducted in Taiwan investigated the effects of a Tai Chi program on the quality of life and physical functioning in end-stage renal disease patients on hemodialysis. Patients, aged 20 years or older, on hemodialysis recruited from the hemodialysis unit at a medical center in central Taiwan were assigned, based on their own preference, to either a control group (25 of them) or an intervention group (21 of them).
The intervention group performed a weekly one-hour short-form Yang style Tai Chi session for a total of 12 weeks. Physical functioning and Kidney Disease Quality of Life (KDQOL) at the baseline and at the end of the intervention were measured. The least square means of repetition of sit-to-stand cycles in one minute (STS-60), 6-min walk test, and gait speed test were significantly improved in the intervention group. In addition, the least square means of the five different dimensions of the KDQOL were all significantly higher in the intervention group, except the SF-12 physical health score.
Improvements in the kidney disease quality of life and physical functioning were observed in Taiwanese patients on hemodialysis with a 12-week Tai Chi exercise intervention. This study was reported by Complementary therapies in medicine in February, 2017.