Effectiveness of physical training on physical performance in patients with dermatomyositis and polymyositis: systematic review and meta-analysis

ABSTRACT This study aimed to evaluate the impact of physical training on physical performance in patients with dermatomyositis and polymyositis. For this purpose, we conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis according to the guidelines of PRISMA (Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses). The literature search was conducted in the following databases: PubMed/MEDLINE and Web of Science, using combinations of the following keywords in English: dermatomyositis OR polymyositis OR myositis AND exercise OR physical exercise OR physical therapy OR aerobic exercise OR endurance exercise OR resistance exercise. Studies that met the following criteria were included: (1) participants diagnosed with dermatomyositis or polymyositis; (2) patients that undergone a physical training protocol; (3) physical performance measured before and after the physical training protocol. A total of 14 articles were selected for inclusion in the systematic review and 10 articles were selected for inclusion in the meta-analysis. The outcomes demonstrate that physical training is effective in increasing overall physical performance in patients with dermatomyositis and polymyositis (effect size: 0.72; 95% CI 0.55; 0.89). Also, our study demonstrated that both the aerobic performance (effect size: 0.88; 95% CI 0.54; 1.21) and resistance performance variables (effect size: 0.64; CI 95% 0.43; 0.85) benefit from physical training in these patients. We concluded that physical training had a significant beneficial effect on the overall, aerobic and resistance physical performance in patients with dermatomyositis and polymyositis.