Abdominally targeted physical exercises as a therapeutic intervention for inflammatory bowel diseases

To examine the effect of routine physical exercises (PhExs) targeted to the abdomen, compared to general exercises, on clinical outcomes, biomarkers, and quality of life (QoL) in patients with inflammatory bowel diseases.

This randomized, controlled (1:1), double-blind, pilot study assessed the effect of following 15-minute videos of either a specific abdominally targeted PhEx inspired by yoga or non-targeted general exercise, at least 6 times a week, on the disease activity in patients with IBD. Disease activity, inflammatory indices (CRP and fecal calprotectin), and QoL measures (PROMIS-29) were compared before and after 4 weeks of intervention.

Twenty-six patients with mild-to-moderate IBD activity (15 Crohn's disease [CD], 11 ulcerative colitis [UC]) were included in the analysis. At the end of the intervention, most patients with IBD in both arms exhibited significant improvements in their clinical scores. However, clinical remission rates were significantly higher among patients with CD (intervention-75 % vs. control-14 %; p < 0.05), but not with UC. Fecal calprotectin remained stable in the interventional group, while it increased in the control group (change in calprotectin: -1 μg/g vs. +104 μg/g, respectively, p < 0.05). Some of the QoL measures improved compared to baseline but this was not specific to the abdominally targeted exercises.

Performance of daily abdominally targeted physical exercises demonstrated clinical improvement and biomarker stabilization, particularly among patients with CD, despite small sample size and short duration, underscoring the potential benefits of physical exercises and specifically those that activate the abdomen.