SynthesisFrontiers in psychology2022
Is exercise/physical activity effective at reducing symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder in adults - A systematic review.
Synthesis in Frontiers in psychology, 2022. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 9 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
9 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it.
- Augmentation of psychotherapy with exercise in adult populations affected by posttraumatic stress disorder: a systematic review of randomized controlled trials.European journal of psychotraumatology · 2025Pooled it
- Exercise type, dose and mental health outcomes in youth: Which types and doses are sufficient?General psychiatry · 2026Article
- The PTSD-Bone Axis: Evidence, Mechanisms, and Management.Current osteoporosis reports · 2026Review
- Trauma and physical pain: an urban-rural comparison of sexually abused girls in Burundi.European journal of psychotraumatology · 2025Article
- Within-person associations of daily activity to sleep actigraphy following trauma: Explicating a novel index of risk for major depressive disorder and posttraumatic stress disorder.Journal of psychopathology and clinical science · 2025Article
- How does exercise regulate the physiological responses of post traumatic stress disorder? the crosstalk between oxidative stress and the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis.Frontiers in physiology · 2025Review
- Using lifestyle interventions and the gut microbiota to improve PTSD symptoms.Frontiers in neuroscience · 2024Review
- Trauma clinicians' views of physical exercise as part of PTSD and complex PTSD treatment: A qualitative study.PLOS mental health · 2024Article
- Is There an Association between Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder and the Incidence of Chronic Low Back Pain?Journal of clinical medicine · 2023Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
5 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
Background: Exercise has been used to manage symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). The effect of exercise on PTSD outcomes has been previously explored in several studies. However, it still remains unclear what type of exercise/physical activity, intensity and duration is most effective for reducing symptoms of PTSD. A systematic review was conducted to determine which forms of exercise or physical activity have the greatest effect on PTSD outcome scores including an evaluation of exercise frequency and volume. Methods: The following electronic databases were systematically searched from January 1980 to June 2021: MEDLINE, PsycINFO, PubMed and Web of Science. Inclusion criteria were studies investigating adults aged 18 or over, reporting the effect of exercise and physical activities on PTSD symptom outcome scores. Two reviewers independently extracted information on study characteristics, exposure and outcomes. In total of 3,217 articles were screened and 23 full text articles further assessed, with 13 RCT's included in the review, covering seven exercise/physical activity interventions. The study protocol was registered prospectively with PROSPERO (CRD42021255131). Results: Thirteen studies from four countries involving a total of 531 patients were selected for inclusion. Individual forms of exercise/physical activity examined showed some effect on reducing PTSD symptoms but combined exercises (resistance training, aerobic, strength and yoga) administered over a 12 week period, three times a week for 30-60 min showed greater effects on PTSD symptoms. Conclusion: The limited evidence suggests that a combined exercise intervention has the best evidence for a having a beneficial effect on PTSD symptoms. Systematic review registration: https://www.crd.york.ac.uk/prospero/display_record.php?RecordID=255131.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What Socratic holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the Socratic graph.