Effects of Pilates exercise on general health of hemodialysis patients.

Pilates is a type of exercise which has recently drawn exercise and health experts' attention. They have noticed that it can improve hemodialysis patients' general health. A clinical trial study was performed. Fifty hemodialysis patients were randomly assigned to intervention and control groups. A demographic information questionnaire and a general health questionnaire (GHQ-28) were completed by the two groups at the beginning of the study. Then, modified Pilates exercises were carried out in the intervention group three times a week over a period of eight weeks. At the end of the study, the GHQ-28 questionnaire was completed by the two groups. In the intervention group, the difference between the mean scores of general health before (45.24 ± 9.9) and after (31.2 ± 6.9) the intervention was significant (p ≤ 0.002). After the intervention, the difference between the mean scores of the control (1.6 ± 1.3) and intervention (14 ± 0.78) groups was also significant (p ≤ 0.001).