Shen-based Qigong Exercise improves cognitive impairment in stable schizophrenia patients in rehabilitation wards: a randomized controlled study

Background: Cognitive impairment is common in chronic schizophrenia patients. The purpose of this study was to explore the efficacy of Shen-based Qigong Exercise (SBQE) in improving the cognitive impairment of stable schizophrenia patients in rehabilitation wards.

Methods: SBQE is derived from the theory of "body-spirit syncretism (xin shen he yi)" in traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) and is extracted from the four traditional Qigong techniques. In this 12-week, randomized, single-blind, controlled study, a total of 40 schizophrenia patients were randomly assigned to either the SBQE group or the control group. The scores for the Scale for the Assessment of Negative Symptoms (SANS) and the Repeatable Battery for the Assessment of Neuropsychological Status (RBANS) were recorded at baseline and week 12, respectively.

Results: At week 12, the mean RBANS total score was 84.5 points in the SBQE group and 72.8 points in the control group. The estimated mean difference was - 11.60 points (2-sided 95% CI, -22.41 to -0.79; P = 0.04). This difference was statistically significant (time-by-group interaction effect estimates, F_(1,38) = 5.07; P = 0.03).

Conclusions: Our preliminary findings indicated that SBQE led to an improvement in cognitive impairment in stable schizophrenia patients in rehabilitation wards. Further research with robust design and larger sample sizes is necessary to validate the effects of SBQE on cognitive function and psychiatric symptoms in schizophrenia, thus providing more substantial evidence for the clinical application of SBQE.

Trial registration: ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT05310955 on 22/02/2022; http://www.chictr.org.cn/ Identifier: ChiCTR2200057373 on 10/03/2022.