Supervised Physical Activity and Improved Functional Capacity among Adults Living with HIV: A Systematic Review.
Natalie Voigt, Hwayoung Cho, Rebecca Schnall
PMID 29861318WHAT IT FOUND
Supervised exercise improved physical function in adults with HIV most consistently when aerobic training was combined with resistance training.
Yoga and aerobic training alone were less consistent, and self-reported function did not always match measured gains.
Key findings
01All seven studies that used supervised combined aerobic and resistance training reported improvements in cardiovascular, strength, and flexibility or balance outcomes compared with control.
02Supervised resistance training alone improved strength, while supervised aerobic training alone showed no significant differences in three of four studies for cardiovascular or self-reported outcomes.
03Yoga and combined yoga/meditation did not improve self-reported functional capacity versus control.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for PTsWhat it means for RNs
Read the rest of this summary
You get three full summaries a month, free, and we do not ask for a card. Search, the TL;DRs and your library stay unlimited either way.
What it does not show
Only English-language studies were included, and none took place in an African country, so findings may not apply where HIV burden is high. The 15 studies were small: 9 had 30 or fewer participants and all had fewer than 100 participants. Studies varied in intervention length, session duration, intensity, outcome measures, and follow-up, so results could not be combined in a meta-analysis. Seven of 15 trials had low risk of bias, but others had unclear or high risk. Risk of bias was low or unclear for randomisation, allocation concealment, and blinding across the included studies. Participants may already have been motivated to exercise, which limits generalisation to less engaged patients. Some trials had no statistically significant difference but may still have had clinical improvement, such as one aerobic trial after 16 weeks.
Declared interests
The supplied article types include NIH extramural and non-U.S. government research support. No author conflict-of-interest statement is provided.
The easy way to misread this
Do not conclude that any supervised activity will improve function. The clearest improvements came from combined aerobic and resistance training, while aerobic-only and yoga studies often showed no differences, and the studies varied too much to pool.