Table 1.
Summary of the neuroendocrine mechanism of qigong.
| Author (year) | Study design | Participants | Sample size | Intervention | Control | Depression scales | Outcome measures | Results |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tsang et al. (12) | RCT | Depressed elders with chronic illness | Saliva EG:13/CG:11 Blood EG:14/CG:16 |
Eight-Section Brocades (12 weeks; 3 times per week; 45 min) | Newspaper reading and discussion program | GDS | 1. Salivary cortisol 2. Blood serotonin |
1. Across-time change in cortisol was not significant between groups 2. For the blood serotonin level, the group × time interaction effect was not significant |
| Chow et al. (34) | RCT | Healthy adults | EG:34/CG:31 | Chan Mi Gong (8 weeks under instructor’s supervision and 4 weeks practice at home; once a week; 90 min) | Waitlist control | DASS-21 | 1. Salivary cortisol | 1. In weeks 8 and 12, qigong group had lower cortisol levels than control group |
| Chan et al. (35) | RCT | University students | EG:18/CG:16 | Self-Healing Qigong (10 weeks; twice per week; 60 min) | Waitlist control | DASS-21 | 1. Salivary cortisol | 1. Significant reduction in salivary cortisol from week 1 to week 10 in the qigong group, while no statistically significant change in the control group |
| Chen et al. (38) | RCT | Breast cancer patients | EG:49/CG:46 | Guolin New Qigong (5–6 weeks; 5 times per week; 40 min) | Waitlist control | CES-D | 1. Salivary cortisol | 1. No significant difference between groups for cortisol circadian slope and cortisol awakening responses |
| Cheung et al. (37) | RCT | Adults with essential hypertension | EG:47/CG:41 | Guolin Qigong (16 weeks; twice per week in the first 4 weeks, then was held monthly; 120 min) | Conventional exercise | BDI | 1. Urine cortisol 2. Aldosterone 3. Renin |
1. No significant difference in cortisol and aldosterone 2. Renin decreased significantly in both groups |
| Hsieh et al. (36) | Quasi-experimental | Elders | EG:32/CG:30 | Laughing Qigong (4 weeks; twice per week; 50–60 min) | Treatment as usual | GDS | 1. Salivary cortisol | 1. Experimental group showed lower cortisol levels compared to the control. However, no significant changes in cortisol levels for participants in the experimental group, while there was a significant increase in cortisol levels |
EG, experimental group; CG, control group; GDS, Geriatric Depression Scale; DASS-21, Depression Anxiety, Stress Scales; CES-D, Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale; BDI, Beck Depression Inventory.