The Effects Of Qigong Intervention Based On Online Guidance On Postoperative Rehabilitation Of Breast Cancer Patients During Covid-19 Epidemic Period

Abstract

OBJECTIVE A randomized controlled trials was conducted to explore the rehabilitation effects of online-guided Qigong intervention on quality of life and physical fitness of postoperative breast cancer patients during COVID-19 epidemic period. METHODS Thirty patients aged 35-65 were randomly assigned to an experimental group and a control group. The patients in the experimental group received twice-weekly Qigong exercises under the remote guidance of Qigong instructors for half an hour each time and were encouraged to practice on their own in their free time. The patients in the control group received twice-weekly stretch band training under the remote guidance of exercise instructors for half an hour each time and were encouraged to do walking exercise in free time. Outcomes were measured and recorded at baseline and after 12 weeks of intervention. The quality of life was measured using the Health Survey Short Form SF-36 and the Breast Cancer Specificity Scale FACT-B (version 4.0). Modified Bruce treadmill test was used to estimate cardiopulmonary endurance. Dumbbell Arm Bending Test and Chair Standing and Sitting Test were used to measure the upper limb and Lower extremity muscle strength, respectively. Eight Feet Standing and Walking Test was used to assessment the reaction time. Analysis of covariance adopted for comparisons between groups, and paired t test was used for before-exercise and after-exercise comparisons within a group. RESULTS Thirteen people in each group, completed the study and the outcome measures were included in the data analysis. The results of item of ' Vitality ' in SF-36 showed that the experimental group increased from 74.23 ± 17.89 to 82.23 ± 18.86 and the improvement was better than the control group (p < 0.05). On other SF-36 items, FACT-B all items, endurance, upper and lower limb muscle strength and reaction time, both the experimental group and the control group showed different degrees of improvement, but there was no significant difference between the two groups (p > 0.05). CONCLUSIONQigong exercise and stretch band training combined with walking can improve the quality of life and physical fitness of postoperative breast cancer patients, however Qigong exercise has more advantages in improving the fatigue status of patients.