Resistance training improves cognitive function in older adults with different cognitive status: a systematic review and Meta-analysis

Abstract

The present study investigated the impact of resistance training (RT) on cognitive function in older adults with different cognitive status by conducting a systematic review and meta-analysis of intervention studies. We performed a literature search with no restriction on publication year in MEDLINE, Embase, CINAHL, SPORTDiscus, and AgeLine from inception up to August 2020. Experimental studies investigating the impact of RT on the cognitive function of cognitively healthy (CH) and cognitively impaired (CI) older adults (≥60 years) were included for analysis. Eighteen studies were included in the final analysis, of which ten studies investigated CH community-dwelling older adult, seven studies investigated CI older adults, and one study investigated both. RT significantly improved overall cognitive function in both CH (SMD = 0.54; 95% CI = 0.00 to 1.08, P = 0.047) and CI (SMD = 0.60; 95% CI = 0.21 to 1.16, P = 0.005) older adults. However, short-term memory was only improved in CH older adults (MD = −0.20; 95% CI = −0.25 to −0.15, P < 0.00001). In conclusion, RT improved overall cognitive function in CH and CI older adults, whereas short-term memory, assessed by the digit span of the WAIS III, was only significantly improved in CH older adults.

Keywords:

• Physical exercise
• strength training
• dementia
• frailty

Disclosure statement

The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

Data availability statement

All data used in the analyses are available in the Table 1.

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by Innovative Medicines Initiative–Joint Undertaking [IMI–JU #115621], the nonprofit research foundation ‘Centro Studi Achille e Linda Lorenzon’, and by a scholarship to H.J.C.-J. from the Coordenação de Aperfei¸oamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior [CAPES; Finance Code 001]. The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, preparation of the manuscript, or decision to publish.