• Yuan-Yuan Song, Ru-Jun Hu, Yong-Shu Diao, Lin Chen, and Xiao-Lian Jiang.
• West China Hospital/West China School of Nursing, Sichuan University, Chengdu, Sichuan Province, China.
• J Pain Symptom Manage. 2018 Apr 1; 55 (4): 1184-1195.

ContextHemodialysis (HD) patients experience a heavy symptom burden that leads to a decreased quality of life. Pharmacological treatment is effective but costly and has adverse effects. Exercise is a promising approach for symptom management, but the effect of exercise on restless legs syndrome (RLS), depression, sleep quality, and fatigue in HD patients is still uncertain.ObjectivesThis meta-analysis was conducted to identify whether exercise training is beneficial in the treatment of the symptoms of RLS, depression, poor sleep quality, and fatigue in patients receiving HD.MethodsA systematic search of PubMed, Embase, Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature, PsycINFO, Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, and Web of Science was conducted to identify randomized controlled trials (RCTs) comparing exercise training with routine care on RLS, depression, sleep quality, and fatigue among HD patients. Quality assessment was conducted using the Cochrane risk of bias tool, and RevMan 5.3 was used to analyze the data.ResultsFifteen RCTs that met our inclusion criteria were included. The pooled effect size showed that exercise training was effective on RLS (P < 0.001), depression (P < 0.001), and fatigue (P < 0.001). However, effect size combinations for sleep quality were not performed owing to the sensitivity analysis results.ConclusionExercise training may help HD patients to reduce the severity of RLS, depression, and fatigue. More high-quality RCTs with larger samples and comparative RCTs focused on different exercise regimens are needed.Copyright © 2017 American Academy of Hospice and Palliative Medicine. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

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