Hypochondriasis as a mental disorder of the elderly: possibilities for alleviating the psychological state in group fitness Qigong classes

This research analyzes the effectiveness of Qigong gymnastics in improving the mental state of elderly patients with diagnosed hypochondriac syndrome. It was conducted in 2022 in Beijing (People's Republic of China) and enrolled 152 elderly patients with the diagnosed hypochondriac syndrome, age 72.3 +/- 5.6 years. Group 1 consisted of 76 patients who did Qigong exercises for 1 year. Group 2 involved 76 patients who followed standard therapeutic exercises. Group 3 (control) enrolled 80 patients who did not do any gymnastics. The authors compared the anxiety indicators in patients of all three groups at baseline and after the experiment. The researchers also compared the mean score on the proposed questionnaire of 18 questions divided into 3-factor groups. At baseline, there were no significant differences in the scores (P >= 0.05). In Group 1, there was a 2-fold score decrease (P <= 0.01 between the baseline and post-study). In Group 2, the decrease was 0.5-fold (P <= 0.05); and in Group 3, there were no changes (P >= 0.05). In terms of anxiety, Group 1 had differences only at baseline (P <= 0.01). In Groups 2 and 3, high personal and situational anxiety remained at the post-study stage (P <= 0.05). Qigong gymnastics had a stabilizing effect on the mental state of patients diagnosed with hypochondriasis.