UNASSIGNED: Approximately one-half of all adults with HIV experience chronic pain. Needed are nonpharmacological approaches to improve pain management in this population.
UNASSIGNED: For this study, we conducted in-depth qualitative interviews (n = 20) with thirteen adults with HIV and 7 HIV care providers regarding their perceptions of Tai Chi for chronic pain management. The interviews were audio recorded, transcribed, double-coded, and analyzed using applied thematic analysis.
UNASSIGNED: HIV patients had limited prior exposure to Tai Chi and had not previously considered this practice for pain management. However, after viewing a brief video demonstration of Tai Chi, patients recognized potential benefits, including relaxation, stress reduction, and pain lessening. Patients were surprised by the gentle nature of Tai Chi and expressed enthusiasm to learn more about Tai Chi. HIV healthcare providers similarly had limited knowledge of Tai Chi for pain management. HIV care providers shared several helpful insights on the potential implementation of Tai Chi with this population.
UNASSIGNED: Adults with HIV and healthcare providers were optimistic that Tai Chi would reduce stress and ease chronic pain. These data suggest that Tai Chi would be of interest to HIV patients and care providers as a novel pain management strategy.

BACKGROUND: The bone status of postmenopausal women is worsening. In fact, postmenopausal period is the high incidence stage of osteoporosis and falls. Notably, a recent study has pointed out that exercise can improve bone health in postmenopausal women. However, the effect of Tai Chi exercise on postmenopausal women is controversial. Therefore, a meta-analysis was designed to analyze the effect of Tai Chi exercise on bone health and fall prevention in postmenopausal women.
METHODS: The researches on Tai Chi improving the bone health of postmenopausal women before August 31, 2023 were collected from Chinese and English databases, such as PubMed, Embase, and Web of Science, etc. The risk of bias of the included studies was assessed using the Cochrane risk-of-bias tool for randomized trials. Besides, R software 4.3.1 was employed to analyze the effect sizes in the meta-analysis to summarize the impact of Tai Chi on vertebral bone mineral density, serum calcium, clinical balance scores, the number of falls, total falls, and health status scores in postmenopausal women.
RESULTS: There were 12 studies eventually included in this meta-analysis. A total of 1,272 postmenopausal women were involved, including 628 in the experimental group (intervention with Tai Chi exercise) and 644 in the control group (without any intervention). Briefly, postmenopausal women practicing Tai Chi presented a significant increase in vertebral bone density [standardized mean difference (SMD) = 0.37, 95% confidence interval (CI) (0.04-0.71), P = 0.03] and health status score [SMD = 0.25, 95% CI (0.01-0.49), P = 0.04]. In contrast, there were no significant differences for postmenopausal women between the two groups in terms of serum calcium [SMD = -0.01, 95% CI (-0.39, 0.36), P = 0.77], clinical balance [SMD = 0.17, 95% CI (-0.01, 0.46), P = 0.23], number of falls [SMD = -0.61, 95% CI (-1.24, 0.02), P = 0.06] and total falls [odds ratio = 0.35, 95% CI (0.11-1.12), P = 0.07].
CONCLUSIONS: Tai Chi exercise can improve the bone mineral density of postmenopausal women, thereby maintaining bone health. Hence, Tai Chi exercise is necessary to prevent osteoporosis.

BACKGROUND: The arousal state has been demonstrated to be involved in the fundamental pathophysiological mechanism of sleep disturbances. Tai chi (TC) and repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) have been documented to alleviate sleep disturbances by interfering with different arousal components. It is reasonable to assume that combining TC and rTMS could induce synergistic and longer-lasting benefits for sleep disturbances.
METHODS: Thirty-eight older community-dwelling people were randomly assigned to one of three groups: TC plus rTMS (n = 12), TC alone (n = 13), and treat-as-usual (TAU) (n = 13). The interventions were conducted three times per week for 4 weeks for the two intervention groups. The primary outcome was the insomnia severity, while the secondary outcomes were the actigraphy-assessed sleep patterns, use of hypnotic medications, mood states, and quality of life. The mediator outcomes included self-reported somatic arousal and cognitive arousal as well as electroencephalogram (EEG)-assessed cortical arousal. The assessments were conducted at baseline (T0), post-intervention (T1), and 3-month follow-up (T2).
RESULTS: Significant improvements in the insomnia severity were observed in the TC plus rTMS group compared with the TAU group at T1 (Cohen\'s d = 1.62, p = 0.003) and T2 (Cohen\'s d = 1.97, p < 0.001). In contrast, significant improvements in the TC alone group were found only at T2 (Cohen\'s d = 1.03, p = 0.010) when compared with the TAU group. Significant interaction effects were noted on the actigraphy-assessed sleep efficiency (p = 0.015) and total sleep time (p = 0.004), depression (p = 0.003) and stress scores (p = 0.002), and mental function in relation to quality of life (p = 0.042). However, none of the mediators elucidated how combining TC and rTMS could improve the insomnia severity.
CONCLUSIONS: The research findings are expected to guide further clinical practice in the management of sleep disturbances among older adults using various interventions. Future studies are needed to unravel the underlying mechanism and optimize the protocol to maximize the therapeutic benefits.

UNASSIGNED: Tai Chi is an increasingly utilized aerobic rehabilitation exercise in the field of cardiovascular disease (CVD). However, there remains debate regarding its effects on physiological function and mental health in patients with coronary heart disease (CHD). This study aims to investigate the impact of Tai Chi-based rehabilitation exercises on physical and psychological health outcomes for CHD patients.
UNASSIGNED: By collecting data from 12 databases up to December 2022, we conducted a meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials (RCTs) to evaluate the effects of Tai Chi on the physical function and psychological health among CHD patients.
UNASSIGNED: We analyzed twenty qualified studies involving 2095 patients. Meta-analyses revealed that compared with conventional therapy groups, those who participated in Tai Chi-based interventions demonstrated significant improvements in physical function as measured by six-minute walk test (6MWT) [mean difference (MD) = 56.40, 95% confidence interval (CI) (38.50, 74.29), p < 0.01], maximal oxygen consumption ( VO 2 max) [standardized mean difference (SMD) = 0. 57, 95% CI (0.12, 1.03), p = 0.01], New York Heart Association (NYHA) class [relative risk (RR) = 1.34, 95% CI (1.18, 1.53), p < 0.01] and physical health components (PHC) [SMD = 1.23, 95% CI (0.76, 1.69), p < 0.01]. Additionally, Tai Chi participants showed greater improvement than control groups across various psychological parameters including anxiety scales [SMD = -0.80, 95% CI (-1.33, -0.28), p = 0.003], depression scales [SMD = -0.77, 95% CI (-1.32, -0.23), p = 0.005] and mental health components (MHC) [SMD = 1.27, 95% CI (0.76, -1.78), p < 0.01]. The GRADEpro (Grade Guideline Development Tool) indicated evidence levels ranging from very low to moderate.
UNASSIGNED: The present meta-analysis demonstrates that mind-body rehabilitation exercises based on Tai Chi can improve both physical and psychological health outcomes for CHD patients. These findings suggest that this exercise pattern may be a potential option for cardiovascular rehabilitation.
UNASSIGNED: The protocol for this systematic review and meta-analysis has been registered with PROSPERO International Prospective Systematic Reviews (No: CRD42022370021, http://www.crd.york.ac.uk/PROSPERO).

This Quality Improvement project evaluated the implementation of a virtual Tai Chi program for older Veterans (OVs) at risk of loneliness and/or physical deconditioning. A 12-week Tai Chi course was conducted virtually at three Veterans Affairs sites using VA Video Connect (VVC). Changes in physical function based on the 30-Second Chair Stand (30CST) and loneliness based on the De Jong Gierveld Loneliness Scale (DJGS) were measured, as were the OVs\' satisfaction and adherence. Of 109 OVs who enrolled, 74 completed the program with a mean attendance rate of 84%. Completers demonstrated a statistically significant improvement in the 30CST, and those who were moderately or severely lonely at baseline saw a statistically significant improvement in the DJGS. Course evaluations were generally very positive. Results suggest that a virtual Tai Chi program is an effective and very satisfying intervention for OVs at risk of loneliness or physical deconditioning.

UNASSIGNED: Depression poses significant threats to adolescents\' health globally. Research has shown the potential of mind-body therapies to alleviate depression, but limited studies have directly compared the therapeutic effects of different types of mind-body therapies on adolescent depression and the optimal therapy remain unclear. Therefore, we conducted a systematic review and network meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials that met the inclusion criteria to explore the effectiveness of different types of mind-body therapies as interventions to improve depression among adolescents, and to identify the most effective interventions.
UNASSIGNED: A comprehensive search of databases including PubMed, EMBASE, Cochrane Library, Web of Science, and Scopus up to January 2024 was conducted to assess the impact of mind-body therapies on depression among adolescents. The risk of bias of the included studies was evaluated using Cochrane Review Manager 5.4. STATA 18.0 was used for network meta-analysis. The node-splitting method was used to test the local inconsistency of the network meta-analysis. Funnel plots and the Egger\'s test were utilized to assess the potential impact of bias in this study.
UNASSIGNED: This network meta-analysis included 9 randomized controlled trials involving a total of 955 subjects. The results indicated that yoga, dance therapy and Tai Chi were more effective than other mind-body therapies in reducing symptoms of depression among adolescents. Specifically, according to the SUCRA ranking, yoga was rated to be the optimal intervention for adolescents with depression (SCURA: 82.2%), followed by dance therapy (SCURA: 77.5%) and Tai Chi (SCURA: 64.9%).
UNASSIGNED: This study revealed that mind-body therapies have positive effects on improving depression among adolescents. Yoga may be the most effective intervention among the different types of mind-body therapies. However, due to the small sample size of patients included, the certainty of the results was limited to some extent. Therefore, further investigation is necessary to strengthen the evidence base when more relevant studies become available.
UNASSIGNED: https://www.crd.york.ac.uk/PROSPERO/, identifier CRD42024508774.

The battle against depression in the elderly is crucial due to its significant impact on their quality of life, physical and cognitive health, increased risk of social isolation and suicide, as well as the associated higher healthcare costs. This research investigates the effects of traditional and augmented reality Tai Chi, using the virtual environment \"Managed Tai Chi,\" on depression in elderly individuals. The study involved 300 participants aged over 60 from the Beijing Medical Center, with an experimental period lasting six months and sessions held once a week. The Geriatric Depression Scale (GDS) was utilized as a diagnostic tool at the pre-test and post-test stages. The findings revealed that the VR group exhibited a more substantial reduction in depression compared to the traditional and control groups (p ≤ 0.05), indicating the enhanced efficacy of Tai Chi with VR augmentation in treating depression in the elderly.

(1) Background: The objective of this study was to recognize tai chi movements using inertial measurement units (IMUs) and temporal convolutional neural networks (TCNs) and to provide precise interventions for elderly people. (2) Methods: This study consisted of two parts: firstly, 70 skilled tai chi practitioners were used for movement recognition; secondly, 60 elderly males were used for an intervention study. IMU data were collected from skilled tai chi practitioners performing Bafa Wubu, and TCN models were constructed and trained to classify these movements. Elderly participants were divided into a precision intervention group and a standard intervention group, with the former receiving weekly real-time IMU feedback. Outcomes measured included balance, grip strength, quality of life, and depression. (3) Results: The TCN model demonstrated high accuracy in identifying tai chi movements, with percentages ranging from 82.6% to 94.4%. After eight weeks of intervention, both groups showed significant improvements in grip strength, quality of life, and depression. However, only the precision intervention group showed a significant increase in balance and higher post-intervention scores compared to the standard intervention group. (4) Conclusions: This study successfully employed IMU and TCN to identify Tai Chi movements and provide targeted feedback to older participants. Real-time IMU feedback can enhance health outcome indicators in elderly males.

OBJECTIVE: Through a randomized controlled trial on older adults with sarcopenia, this study compared the training effects of an AI-based remote training group using deep learning-based 3D human pose estimation technology with those of a face-to-face traditional training group and a general remote training group.
METHODS: Seventy five older adults with sarcopenia aged 60-75 from community organizations in Changchun city were randomly divided into a face-to-face traditional training group (TRHG), a general remote training group (GTHG), and an AI-based remote training group (AITHG). All groups underwent a 3-month program consisting of 24-form Taichi exercises, with a frequency of 3 sessions per week and each session lasting 40 min. The participants underwent Appendicular Skeletal Muscle Mass Index (ASMI), grip strength, 6-meter walking pace, Timed Up and Go test (TUGT), and quality of life score (QoL) tests before the experiment, during the mid-term, and after the experiment. This study used SPSS26.0 software to perform one-way ANOVA and repeated measures ANOVA tests to compare the differences among the three groups. A significance level of p < 0.05 was defined as having significant difference, while p < 0.01 was defined as having a highly significant difference.
RESULTS: (1) The comparison between the mid-term and pre-term indicators showed that TRHG experienced significant improvements in ASMI, 6-meter walking pace, and QoL (p < 0.01), and a significant improvement in TUGT timing test (p < 0.05); GTHG experienced extremely significant improvements in 6-meter walking pace and QoL (p < 0.01); AITHG experienced extremely significant improvements in ASMI, 6-meter walking pace, and QoL (p < 0.01), and a significant improvement in TUGT timing test (p < 0.05). (2) The comparison between the post-term and pre-term indicators showed that TRHG experienced extremely significant improvements in TUGT timing test (p < 0.01); GTHG experienced significant improvements in ASMI and TUGT timing test (p < 0.05); and AITHG experienced extremely significant improvements in TUGT timing test (p < 0.01). (3) During the mid-term, there was no significant difference among the groups in all tests (p > 0.05). The same was in post-term tests (p > 0.05).
CONCLUSIONS: Compared to the pre-experiment, there was no significant difference at the post- experiment in the recovery effects on the muscle quality, physical activity ability, and life quality of patients with sarcopenia between the AI-based remote training group and the face-to-face traditional training group. 3D pose estimation is equally as effective as traditional rehabilitation methods in enhancing muscle quality, functionality and life quality in older adults with sarcopenia.
BACKGROUND: The trial was registered in ClinicalTrials.gov (NCT05767710).

Traumatic brain injury (TBI) is a complex condition associated with a range of persistent symptoms including headaches, cognitive dysfunction, mental fatigue, insomnia, and mood disorders. Conventional treatments for TBI-related symptoms can be insufficient, leading to interest in complementary and integrative medicine (CIM) approaches. This comprehensive article examines the existing literature on CIM modalities, including mind-body interventions, acupuncture/acupressure, herbal remedies, nutritional supplements, biofeedback, yoga, and tai chi in the context of managing secondary complications following TBI. The article highlights potential benefits and limitations of CIM modalities, while acknowledging the need for further research to better establish efficacy and safety in this specific population.