Baduanjin improves neck pain and functional movement in middle-aged and elderly people: A systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials

Background Neck pain (NP), one of the most common musculoskeletal diseases, exercises a great influence on the daily life of individuals, especially the elderly. Baduanjin is a traditional Qigong therapy from China, but there is no evidence for its use in the treatment of neck pain in middle-aged and elderly people. Objective We hope to summarize the efficacy evidence of Baduanjin in the treatment of middle-aged and elderly patients with neck pain (NP) for the first time, conduct a systematic review and meta-analysis, and provide basic evidence-based evidence for clinical practice. Methods Two researchers collectively searched PubMed, Web of Science, Embase, Cochrane Library, China Biology Medicine disk (Sino-Med), China National Knowledge Infrastructure (CNKI), Wanfang database, and China Science and Technology Journal Database (VIP). The search time is set from initial to 27 September 2022, to find out RCT articles that may meet the criteria. The risk bias assessment tool Cochrane was applied to assess the methodological quality of involved studies. RevMan 5.3 was used for the meta-analysis with a mean difference (MD) and 95% confidence interval (CI), and the model type was a random effects model. The VAS scores of the intervention and control groups were extracted and the results of the meta-analysis were presented using a forest plot. Results In total, 13 randomized controlled trials were meta-analyzed, including 840 patients. The results turned out that the VAS score in the intervention group was below the control group, which was statistically significant [MD = −1.15, 95% CI (−1.39, −0.92) and P < 0. 001]. The result of general efficiency suggests that the Baduanjin group was better than the control group [RR = 1.19, 95% CI (1.10, 1.29), P < 0.001]. Conclusion The existing results seem to show that Baduanjin is safe and has a trend of positive benefits in the treatment of neck pain in middle-aged and elderly people. However, considering the limitations of this study, we need to be cautious in our conclusions, and more studies are needed to verify it in future.