ABSTRACT
Objective: To evaluate the effects of Liu Zi Jue Qigong (LQG)-based breathing training on the curvature and range of motion (ROM) of the thoracic and lumbar spines in different positions. Methods: Forty-seven college students were selected as subjects and randomly divided into an observation group and a control group. In the observation group, 27 subjects received regular LQG-based breathing training for 12 weeks, while 20 subjects in the control group did not receive any intervention. The spine measuring instrument Spinal Mouse was adopted to detect the curvature and ROM of the thoracic and lumbar spines. Results: In the observation group, the changes in the curvatures of thoracic spine in the upright and forward-bending positions showed statistical significance after LQG exercise (P<0.05), while there was no notable difference in the control group. The comparison of ROM of the thoracic spine from the upright position to the forward-bending and load-bearing positions showed statistically significant difference in the observation group (P<0.05), while there was no significant difference in the control group. There was no significant difference in the lumbar curvature and ROM in the two groups after LQG exercise. Conclusion: LQG-based breathing training improves the curvature and ROM of the thoracic spine.
ABSTRACT
OBJECTIVE: The research aims to evaluate effects of the Tai Chi exercise therapy on glucose and lipid metabolism in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). DESIGN: Systematic review and meta-analysis of existing literature were undertaken. METHODS: Seven electronic resource databases were scanned to collect eligible studies. Two reviewers selected studies, the meta-analysis was performed with RevMan 5.3 after quality evaluation. RESULTS: Nineteen RCT trails involved in 18 reports were included in the meta-analysis, involving 1220 research objects. The results show that the Tai Chi exercise group is better than the control group in decreasing fasting blood glucose (FBG) (MD = - 0.79, 95 %CI (- 1.73, - 0.68), p < 0.0001), glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c) (MD = - 1.10, 95 % CI (- 1.78, - 0.43), p = 0.001), triglyceride (TG) (MD = - 0.23, 95 % CI (- 0.32, - 0.15), p < 0.0001) and in increasing the concentration of high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) (MD = 0.15, 95 % CI (0.11, 0.20), p < 0.0001) of T2DM patients. CONCLUSIONS: Tai Chi exercise therapy shows significant superiority in improving the FBG, HbA1c, TG, and HDL-C in T2DM patients. It can be used as one of the exercise prescriptions for prevention and treatment of T2DM patients.
