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The effectiveness of physical exercise on cognitive and psychological outcomes in individuals with mild cognitive impairment: A systematic review and meta-analysis
Song D, Yu DSF, Li PWC, Lei Y.. International journal of nursing studies, 2018-01-04
Topic: Risk, prevention and care in population studies
Objective Individuals with mild cognitive impairment (MCI) are at high risk for developing dementia. Physical exercise is a promising intervention for cognitive decline. Systematic reviews regarding the effects of physical exercise on cognitive and psychological outcomes among MCI patients are limited, and a systematic review exploring the effects of exercise modalities on the results has not been conducted. This study evaluated the effects of physical exercise on cognitive and psychological outcomes for MCI patients and attempted to identify which specific modality of exercise is more effective. Design Systematic review and meta-analysis. Data sources A systematic search of Medline, CINAHL, EMBASE, PsycINFO, SPORTDiscus, and the China National Knowledge Infrastructure was performed. Review methods Two reviewers independently assessed the study quality using the Effective Public Health Practice Project Quality Assessment Tool. Meta-analysis was conducted when data were available, with further subgroup analyses for exercise types. A series of sensitivity analyses were conducted to explore the influence of study quality and control types on the primary outcome. A narrative analysis was performed when statistical synthesis was inappropriate. Results Eleven studies met the inclusion criteria. The exercise interventions can be classified into three types: (a) aerobic exercise, (b) resistance exercise, and (c) multi-modal exercise. Results showed that physical exercise had beneficial effects for global cognition [standard mean difference (SMD) = 0.30, 95% confidence interval (CI): 0.10-0.49, p = 0.002]. Further subgroup analysis demonstrated that aerobic exercise programmes are consistently associated with medium effect size (SMD: 0.54-0.58). However, the effects of physical exercise on domain-specific cognitive function and psychological outcomes in MCI patients remain inconclusive. Results of sensitivity analysis indicated that types of control exert influence on the outcomes. Conclusions Physical exercise, aerobic exercise in particular, benefits global cognition in MCI patients. The evidence of physical exercise on domain-specific cognitive function and psychological outcomes remains unclear, more trials with rigorous study design are necessary to provide the evidence.
Key findings
- Systematic reviews regarding the effects of physical exercise on cognitive and psychological outcomes among MCI patients are limited, and a systematic review exploring the effects of exercise modalities on the results has not been conducted.
- Results Eleven studies met the inclusion criteria.
- Results showed that physical exercise had beneficial effects for global cognition [standard mean difference (SMD) = 0.30, 95% confidence interval (CI): 0.10-0.49, p = 0.002].
- Further subgroup analysis demonstrated that aerobic exercise programmes are consistently associated with medium effect size (SMD: 0.54-0.58).
- Results of sensitivity analysis indicated that types of control exert influence on the outcomes.
Why it matters
This systematic review and meta-analysis found that physical exercise had beneficial effects on global cognition in individuals with mild cognitive impairment. Subgroup analysis suggested that different exercise modalities may have different effects, though the review was limited to eleven studies.
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Study details
- Study designsystematic review
- Evidence strengthHigh
How this study scored 60/100
Published in a peer-reviewed journal, and it is a systematic review of all the studies on the question. Scored zero for sample size, effect reported and studied in people because the record does not state it. We have no data on senior author's track record, so that was left out: it earned 58 of the 96 points we could judge it on, which is 60 out of 100.
| Component | Points | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Journal tier | 7 / 10 | Tier 3 — peer-reviewed journal (International journal of nursing studies) |
| Journal's citation record | 2 / 4 | International Journal of Nursing Studies: journal h-index 210 (OpenAlex, 2026-10-29) |
| Study design | 12 / 12 | A systematic review of all the studies on the question |
| Strength of evidence | 5 / 5 | Rated “high” in our summary |
| Peer-review validation | 10 / 10 | Peer-reviewed. Published as an article in a named peer-reviewed journal. |
| How recent | 2 / 5 | 2018 — within 10 year(s) of the newest study here |
| Sample size | 0 / 4 | Participant count not stated — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Effect reported | 0 / 3 | No effect size reported — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Studied in people | 0 / 3 | Not stated whether this was studied in people — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Randomised / blinded | 0 / 2 | A review of other studies — randomisation is not credited here |
| Times cited | 5 / 7 | Cited 244 times (OpenAlex, 2026-10-10) |
| Citations per year | 4 / 5 | 24.4 citations a year over 10 year(s) since 2018 |
| Impact for its field and year | 3 / 6 | Cited 5.1× the average for papers of its field and year (OpenAlex FWCI) |
| Cited by studies here | 2 / 6 | Cited by 7 other studies in this library |
| Still being cited | 3 / 4 | Cited 68 times in 2024–2026 (2026 still in progress; OpenAlex) |
| Senior author's track record | — / 4 | Senior author's record not available — left out of this score |
| Institution's track record | 1 / 3 | Chinese University of Hong Kong: institution h-index 1,100 (OpenAlex) |
| Multi-centre collaboration | 0 / 3 | OpenAlex lists 1 institution(s) in 1 country — scores zero (affiliation lists can be incomplete) |
| Indexed in PubMed | 2 / 2 | Indexed in PubMed (PMID 29334638) |
| Free to read | 0 / 2 | Behind a paywall — scores zero |
| Points | 58 / 96 | Scored on 19 of 20 parts. We have no data for the rest, so they are left out: 58 of the 96 points we could judge it on is 60 out of 100. |
| Total | 60 / 100 | — |
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Cite this study APA, Vancouver, BibTeX · download .bib or .ris
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APA 7th
Song, D., Yu, D. S. F., Li, P. W. C., & Lei, Y. (2018). The effectiveness of physical exercise on cognitive and psychological outcomes in individuals with mild cognitive impairment: A systematic review and meta-analysis. International journal of nursing studies. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijnurstu.2018.01.002
Vancouver
Song D, Yu DSF, Li PWC, Lei Y. The effectiveness of physical exercise on cognitive and psychological outcomes in individuals with mild cognitive impairment: A systematic review and meta-analysis. International journal of nursing studies. 2018. doi:10.1016/j.ijnurstu.2018.01.002. PMID: 29334638.
BibTeX
@article{song2018-29334638,
author = {Song, D. and Yu, D. S. F. and Li, P. W. C. and Lei, Y.},
title = {{The effectiveness of physical exercise on cognitive and psychological outcomes in individuals with mild cognitive impairment: A systematic review and meta-analysis}},
journal = {International journal of nursing studies},
year = {2018},
doi = {10.1016/j.ijnurstu.2018.01.002},
pmid = {29334638},
url = {https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijnurstu.2018.01.002}
}
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