The effectiveness of exercise on global cognitive function, balance, depression symptoms, and sleep quality in patients with mild cognitive impairment: A systematic review and meta-analysis

Abstract

This review aimed to examine the effectiveness of exercise on global cognitive function, balance, depression symptoms, and sleep quality in patients with mild cognitive impairment. And systematically retrieved five electronic databases, including the Cochrane library, PubMed, Embase, Web of Science, and PsycINFO, from inception to May 2022. Of 1102 studies, twenty-one studies were included in this meta-analysis. The polled results revealed that exercise could significantly improve global cognitive function (SMD = 0.64, 95%CI: 0.36 to 0.91, Z = 4.56, P < 0.00001), balance (SMD = 0.62, 95%CI: 0.30 to 0.95, Z = 4.56, P = 0.0001) and depression symptoms (SMD = -0.37, 95%CI: -0.64 to -0.10, Z = 2.70, P = 0.007). The exercise was a promising intervention with the potential to be applied in people with mild cognitive impairment.

Keywords: Cognitive decline; Exercise; Meta-analysis; Mild cognitive impairment; Systematic review.