BACKGROUND

Traditional Chinese exercises may be effective in improving cardiorespiratory fitness in post-stroke patients; however, no study has conducted a meta-analysis to assess their its efficacy in meta.

OBJECTIVE

The purpose of this meta-analysis is to evaluate how traditional Chinese exercises affect post-stroke cardiorespiratory fitness.

METHODS

We conducted a comprehensive search across eight Chinese and English databases, including Wan Fang, VIP, CBM, PubMed, Embase, Web of Science, and the Cochrane Library, from the inception of these databases until May 2025. Our focus was on clinical randomized controlled trials related to stroke, cardiorespiratory function, and traditional Chinese exercises. After assessing the quality of the literature, we utilized Rev Man 5.4 software to analyze the data. Publication bias was assessed using funnel plots as well as Begg's and Egger's tests, employing Stata 17.0 software.

RESULTS

A total of 23 studies were included in the analysis, and the results of the meta-analysis indicated that traditional Chinese exercises significantly improved cardiopulmonary function in post-stroke patients: pulmonary function indexes [FVC: SMD = 1.01, 95 %CI(0.66,1.35), I= 88 %,P < 0.00001; FEV1: SMD = 1.22, 95 % CI (0.77,1.66), I = 91 %, P < 0.00001; PEF: SMD = 0.87, 95 % CI (0.53,1.21), I= 83 %, P < 0.00001; MVV: MD = 9.65, 95 % CI (8.60,10.70), I= 0 %, P = 0.55]; respiratory muscle function indexes [MIP: SMD = 0.72, 95 % CI (0.43,1.01) I= 67 %, P = 0.001; MEP: SMD = 0.67, 95 %CI (0.49,0.86),I = 0 %, P = 0.55]; cardiac function index [LVEF: MD = 4.00, 95 % CI (2.28,5.72), I = 72 %, P = 0.01]; exercise endurance index [6MWT: MD = 4.49, 95 % CI (3.55,5.42), I = 0 %, P = 0.77]. No serious adverse events related to traditional Chinese exercises were reported. Only one study documented instances of patients experiencing panic attacks and shortness of breath, which resolved upon rest. Following a physician's examination, it was suggested that these symptoms may have been attributed to the patient's failure to consume breakfast, and no subsequent harm was reported.

CONCLUSIONS

Traditional Chinese exercise positively influences cardiorespiratory function in stroke patients, demonstrating the most significant improvements in athletic endurance and cardiac function. However, due to methodological flaws in the literature quality included in the study, there is a need for a multi-center, large-sample, and more rigorously designed experiment to validate these findings and ensure the accuracy of the results.