Characteristics of included studies in this systematic review
| Author, year | Mean age | Participants (M/F) | Intervention | Frequency, duration and intensity of aerobic exercise | Outcomes/measure |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Barnes 201329 | 72.52 | 63 (22/41) | T: dance-based aerobics exercise. C: stretching | 60 min/day, 3 days/week, 12 weeks 60–75% HRmax | Immediate recall/AVLT; delayed recall/AVLT; executive function/TMT-B; verbal fluency/VFT; visuospatial function/UFOV |
| Hu 201430 | 70.03 | 204 (149/55) | T: jogging and shadow-boxing C: usual physical activity | 90 min/week, 6 months Moderate intensity | Immediate recall/MMSE; delayed recall/MMSE |
| Lam 201231 32 | 77.82 | 389 (92/297) | T: Tai Chi C: stretching and toning exercise | 30 min/day, 3 days/week, 1 year Moderate intensity | Global cognitive function/MMSE; delayed recall/10 min delayed recall; attention/digit span (forward); executive function/ TMT-B; verbal fluency/VFT |
| Lam 201533 | 75.50 | 278 (63/215) | T: Tai Chi, static bicycle riding and other physical activity C: social activities | 60 min/day, 1 day/week, 1 year Moderate intensity | Global cognitive function/ADAS-Cog; delayed recall/list learning delayed recall; verbal fluency/VFT |
| Lautenschlager 200834 | 68.65 | 170 (86/84) | T: walking. C: health education | 50 min/day, 3 days/week, 24-week Moderate intensity | Global cognitive function/ADAS-Cog; immediate recall/word list; delayed recall/word list; attention/DSC; verbal fluency/VFT |
| Nagamatsu 201335–38 | 75.36 | 58 (0/58) | T: walking. C: balance and tone | 60 min/day, 2 days/week, 6 months 40% heart rate reserve | Immediate recall/AVLT |
| Nascimento 201439 | 67.70 | 45 (4/41) | T: walking. C: usual physical activity | 60 min/day, 3 days/week, 6 months 60–80% HRmax | Global cognitive function/MoCA; executive function/MoCA |
| Scherder 200540 | 85.00 | 30 (3/27) | T: walking. C: social activities | 30 min/day, 3 days/week, 6 weeks Moderate intensity | Immediate recall/VLMT; delayed recall/VLMT; executive function/TMT-A+B; attention/digit span |
| van Uffelen 200841–44 | 75.00 | 152 (81/71) | T: walking. C: usual physical activity | 1 h/day, 2 days/week, 1 year >3 metabolic equivalents | Immediate recall/AVLT; delayed recall/AVLT; attention/DSC; executive function/SCWT-A; verbal fluency/VFT |
| Varela 201245 | 78.3 | 48 (21/27) | T: cycling. C: recreational activities | 30 min/day, 3 days/week, 3 months 40–60% heart rate reserve | Global cognitive function/MMSE |
| Wei 201446 | 66 | 60 (40/20) | T: handball training C: entertainment | 30 min/day, 5 days/week, 6 months 60% HRmax | Global cognitive function/MMSE |
ADAS-Cog, Alzheimer's Disease Assessment Scale-Cognitive Subscale; AVLT, Auditory Verbal Learning Test; C, the control group; DSC, digit symbol coding total; F, female; HRmax, maximum heart rate; M, male; MMSE, Mini-Mental State Examination; MoCA, Montreal Cognitive Assessment; SCWT-A, Stroop colour word test–abridge; T, the aerobic exercise group; TMT, Trail-Making Test; UFOV, useful field of view; VFT, verbal fluency test.