Efficacy of Exercise Therapy in Persons with Burnout. A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

An increasing amount of scientific work suggests positive effects of exercise-related interventions in patients with burnout. Exercise therapy could therefore be a useful intervention procedure in the treatment of burnout. The aim of this meta-analysis is to examine empirical findings for exercise therapy used to treat burnout in the occupational setting, including the variety of the application and variety of the exercise modality itself. Electronic databases (PubMed, Cochrane Library, Scopus, PubPsych, PsycInfo) were searched (January 2018) for randomized controlled trials reporting on exercise therapy intervention studies in persons with burnout. The burnout scores from the various measurement instruments as well as standardized mean differences (SMDs) with 95% confidence intervals (CI) were calculated and seen as the main outcomes and measures. Four out of six studies with a total sample of 248 participants could be used for meta-analysis. A statement on the combined effect size can only be made with caution due to the length of the confidence interval of [-0.41; 0.09]. With an I² value of 0%, no heterogeneity is present in this meta-analysis. Ultimately there was no clear difference found between intervention and control conditions. This paper does not support the widespread assumption that exercise therapy seems to be a successful means to alleviate burnout symptoms. However, the different types of physical activity and treatment modalities used in the included studies impede clear conclusions. Future studies should deal with the specific efficacy of different exercise modalities and their combination with further cognitive behavioural or mindfulness-based interventions.