SYSTEMATIC REVIEW article
Front. Cardiovasc. Med.
Sec. Hypertension
Comparison of the Therapeutic Effects of Traditional Chinese Medicine Exercise Therapies on Blood Pressure, Lipids and Sleep Quality Among Older Patients Suffering from Hypertension: A Systematic Review and Network Meta-Analysis
Binbin Zhang 1,2
Mingyue Jiao 3
Xiaohui Zhao 3
Fangfang Wen 3
Jifeng Long 3
Jian Li 4,2
Mohd Taib Harun 2
Xianzhi Xie 3
1. Faculty of Sports and Leisure, Guangdong Ocean University, Zhanjiang, China
2. Faculty of Education and Liberal Arts, INTI International University, Nilai, Malaysia
3. School of Teacher Education, Hezhou University, Hezhou, China
4. Department of Physical Education, Shanxi University of Science and Technology, Jincheng, China
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Abstract
(1) Purpose: This study intended to compare the therapeutic effects of traditional Chinese medicine exercise therapies on the blood pressure, blood lipid, quality of life (QOL), Pittsburgh sleep quality index (PSQI), and heart rate (HR) among older patients suffering from hypertension through a network meta-analysis (NMA). (2) Methods: A total of 8 databases (in Chinese or English), comprising PubMed, Embase, Cochrane Library, Web of Science, CNKI, Wanfang Data, CQVIP, and China Biology Medicine disc (CBM disc), were systematically retrieved up to August 7, 2025, in order to determine the eligible randomized controlled trials (RCTs) on the therapeutic effects of different traditional Chinese medicine exercises on blood pressure in older populations. Literature screening was performed based on the inclusion and exclusion criteria to determine the included studies, with data extraction and quality evaluation carried out through Stata 17.0 and R (version 4.3.3) in this NMA. (3) Results: This study included 44 RCTs, involving 3,478 older patients suffering from hypertension. Wuqinxi (WQX) and Qigong (QG) had equivalent effects on reducing systolic blood pressure (SBP) and diastolic blood pressure (DBP). Baduanjin (BDJ) was the most effective in improving total cholesterol, low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C), and PSQI. Tai Chi demonstrated the most significant effects on improving triglyceride (TG). The SUCRA ranking indicated that WQX (85.7%) and QG (76.8%) had the most potential to become the best 2 exercise interventions for improving SBP and DBP. BDJ was the most beneficial intervention for improving TC (95.1%), LDL-C (95.1%), and PSQI (80.5%). (4) Conclusion: Traditional Chinese medicine exercises exhibit different therapeutic effects on older patients with hypertension. Patients are engaged in targeted exercises based on their own conditions. WQX, QG, and BDJ may be the most effective therapies, while TC (Tai Chi) is the least effective intervention.
Summary
Keywords
Hypertension, Network meta-analysis, older patients, therapies, traditional Chinese medicine exercise
Received
17 September 2025
Accepted
16 February 2026
Copyright
© 2026 Zhang, Jiao, Zhao, Wen, Long, Li, Harun and Xie. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
*Correspondence: Xianzhi Xie
Disclaimer
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