The impact of sport on the physical, psychological and social wellbeing of people with chronic breathlessness: A mixed-methods systematic review.
Callum Bradford, Denis Martin, Kirsti J Loughran and 4 others
PMID 37518887WHAT IT FOUND
Sports like dance and Nordic walking were safe and had high attendance, improving exercise capacity.
However, they did not significantly improve health-related quality of life. Participants valued the social cohesion and enjoyment, which may explain better engagement than standard rehabilitation.
Key findings
01Exercise capacity improved significantly with sports interventions compared to control conditions.
02Health-related quality of life did not differ significantly between sport and control conditions for physical or mental components.
03Adherence was generally high, with all dance interventions noting over 90% attendance, and adverse events were rare or minor.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for PTsWhat it means for OTs
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What it does not show
Meta-analyses were limited to Nordic walking and dance due to data adequacy, restricting generalisability to other sports. Qualitative synthesis was limited to dance-based interventions. Fewer than ten studies were included in each meta-analysis, preventing assessment of publication bias. Chronic breathlessness is a symptom, so studies included may have had varying levels of dyspnoea, affecting consistency. Psychosocial outcomes were mostly secondary in included studies, often underpowered.
Declared interests
The authors declared no potential conflicts of interest. Funding was provided by the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) for two of the authors.
The easy way to misread this
Do not assume that improved exercise capacity translates to better quality of life. The review found significant gains in exercise capacity but no significant improvement in health-related quality of life. Additionally, evidence is limited to dance and Nordic walking, so findings may not apply to other sports.