Efficacy and safety of tai chi for hyperlipidaemia: a protocol for systematic review and meta-analysis

Introduction The prevalence of hyperlipidaemia is increasing, and patients with hyperlipidaemia are at increased risk of cardiovascular disease and atherosclerosis. In recent years, there has been a growing number of studies on tai chi for hyperlipidaemia. However, a systematic review on its efficacy and safety is not available. Therefore, this study aims to evaluate the efficacy and safety of tai chi for hyperlipidaemia. Methods and analysis Four English databases and four Chinese databases will be searched from their inception to May 2021: PubMed, Embase, Cochrane Library, Web of Science, China National Knowledge Infrastructure, Chinese Biomedical Literature Database, VIP Database and Wanfang Database. Chinese and English randomised controlled trials related to tai chi for hyperlipidaemia will be included. Two reviewers should independently carry out study selection, data extraction and risk assessment of bias. The risk of bias in the study will be assessed by the Cochrane risk of bias tool. RevMan (V.5.4) statistical software will be applied for meta-analysis. The Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development and Evaluation system approach will be employed to assess the quality of evidence. Ethics and dissemination Ethical approval is not required because this protocol will not involve patients' individual information and jeopardise the rights of patients. The meta-analysis result will be reported in peer-reviewed journals or disseminated at related conferences. OSF registration number DOI 10.17605/OSF.IO/79D2S.