Qi-Training and Immunological Parameters: A Cross-Sectional Study

Abstract

This article examined the effects of qi-training on peripheral T lymphocyte concentrations in a cross-sectional study involving three groups of subjects: normal healthy subjects (n = 22) and two groups of qi trainees (group Q1: qi-training for 1-12 months, n = 52; and group Q2: qi-training for >12 months, n = 63). Nonparametric statistical tests revealed significant differences between the groups in TH/TS/C ratio (p < .001) and in the ratio of memory TH lymphocytes (CD45RA-) to naïve TH lymphocytes (CD45RA+) (p < .001). These findings suggest that qi-training modulates peripheral T lymphocyte concentrations. However, the functional modulation of T helper lymphocytes should be tested in a larger population and compared with other interventions.

The Effect of Qigong Exercise on Immunity and Infections: A Systematic Review of Controlled Trials

“…Seven studies including two RCTs (Manzaneque et al, 2004;Yu and Wang, 2007), two CCTs (Yan, 1989;Yao, 1989) and three ROSs (Ryu et al, 1995a(Ryu et al, , 1995bLee et al, 2006) met the inclusion criteria. Subjects in these studies included young college students (Yan, 1989;Manzaneque et al, 2004), adults aged 20 to 50 (Ryu et al, 1995a(Ryu et al, , 1995bLee et al, 2006), and patients with aplastic anemia (AA) (Yao, 1989).…”

“…Subjects in these studies included young college students (Yan, 1989;Manzaneque et al, 2004), adults aged 20 to 50 (Ryu et al, 1995a(Ryu et al, , 1995bLee et al, 2006), and patients with aplastic anemia (AA) (Yao, 1989). One study focused solely on males (Ryu et al, 1995a).…”

“…Durations of qigong intervention ranged from 1 to 6 months for prospective trials including RCTs and CCTs (Yan, 1989;Yao, 1989;Manzaneque et al, 2004;Yu and Wang, 2007), and from one to longer than 25 months for ROSs (Ryu et al, 1995a(Ryu et al, , 1995bLee et al, 2006). Five studies were conducted with a two-armed parallel group design, one study with a 3-armed parallel group design (Lee et al, 2006), and one study with a fivearmed parallel group design (Ryu et al, 1995a).…”

“…Five studies were conducted with a two-armed parallel group design, one study with a 3-armed parallel group design (Lee et al, 2006), and one study with a fivearmed parallel group design (Ryu et al, 1995a). The intervention groups were generally compared with a wait-list control group (Ryu et al, 1995a(Ryu et al, , 1995bLee et al, 2006) or a control group with usual activities (Manzaneque et al, 2004;Yu and Wang, 2007) or usual medical care (Yao, 1989), except for one study (Yan, 1989) in which qigong exercise was compared with taiji exercise.…”

“…One study focused on functional measures of immunity (antigen-induced immunity) (Ryu et al, 1995a), and six studies on enumerative parameters of immunity (Yan, 1989;Yao, 1989;Ryu et al, 1995b;Manzaneque et al, 2004;Lee et al, 2006;Yu and Wang, 2007). No study focused on clinical symptoms relevant to infections.…”