Qigong and pain: research overview
Not medical advice. This page lists research about qigong and pain. It does not say whether qigong works for any person or condition. Talk to a qualified health professional before starting a new exercise program, especially if you have a medical condition.
- Studies in PubMed
- 6 (tagged with “Pain” as a major topic)
- Years
- 2005–2017
- Registered trials
- 6 on ClinicalTrials.gov
Types of studies
| Publication type | Studies |
|---|---|
| Randomized Controlled Trial | 4 |
| Clinical Trial | 1 |
| Review | 1 |
Each study is counted once, under its strongest type in this order: meta-analysis, systematic review, randomized controlled trial, clinical trial, review, observational study.
Studies, newest first
- The Application of One-Hour Static Qigong Program to Decrease Needle Pain of Korean Adolescents With Type 1 Diabetes: A Randomized Crossover Design. — Journal of evidence-based complementary & alternative medicine, 2017 · DOIRandomized Controlled Trial
- Impact of Qigong on quality of life, pain and depressive symptoms in older adults admitted to an intermediate care rehabilitation unit: a randomized controlled trial. — Aging clinical and experimental research, 2015 · DOIRandomized Controlled Trial
- Higher cortical modulation of pain perception in the human brain: Psychological determinant. — Neuroscience bulletin, 2009 · DOIReview
- Baduanjin alleviates the symptoms of knee osteoarthritis. — Journal of alternative and complementary medicine (New York, N.Y.), 2008 · DOIRandomized Controlled Trial
- fMRI study of pain reaction in the brain under state of "Qigong". — The American journal of Chinese medicine, 2007Clinical Trial
- Efficacy of Qi-therapy (external Qigong) for elderly people with chronic pain. — The International journal of neuroscience, 2005Clinical TrialRandomized Controlled Trial
Registered clinical trials
| Trial | Status | Phase | Enrollment | Start |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Virtual Menstrual Pain Approaches in Females NCT07497711 · Nanyang Technological University | recruiting | phase2, phase3 | 145 | 2026-04-15 |
| Effect of Baduanjin on Individuals With Knee Osteoarthritis NCT06650865 · Biruni University | completed | na | 60 | 2024-10-15 |
| The Effects of Qigong Exercise Training After Thoracotomy NCT05470192 · Akdeniz University | completed | na | 64 | 2022-10-28 |
| The Effects of Baduanjin Qigong Exercise on Ankylosing Spondylitis: A Randomized Controlled Study NCT05771376 · Akdeniz University | completed | na | 59 | 2022-02-13 |
| Comparison of Ba-Duan-Jin and Pregabalin in Patients with Fibromyalgia NCT03797560 · Guang'anmen Hospital of China Academy of Chinese Medical Sciences | completed | na | 104 | 2019-03-22 |
| Eight Brocades (Ba Duan Jin) for Treating Patients With Fibromyalgia NCT02401386 · Guang'anmen Hospital of China Academy of Chinese Medical Sciences | completed | na | 62 | 2015-03 |
Government health information
The U.S. National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health summarizes the evidence on qigong.
Study list: PubMed (U.S. National Library of Medicine), citation data only. Trials: ClinicalTrials.gov. Retrieved 2026-10-22.
Data: PubMed (NLM citation data, free to use (abstracts not reproduced)); ClinicalTrials.gov (Public domain (U.S. Government work)); NCCIH (Public domain (U.S. Government work)). Retrieved 2026-10-22.