Applications of Artificial Intelligence in Sports Rehabilitation: Current Applications, Challenges, and Their Impact on Health and Physical Education
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.12775/JEHS.2026.87.67695Keywords
Artificial intelligence, sports rehabilitation, health promotion, physical education, exercise assessment, health educationAbstract
Background:Exercise rehabilitation plays an essential role in improving motor function, promoting health, and enhancing quality of life among individuals with functional impairments, chronic diseases, and older adults. However, traditional rehabilitation models face limitations, particularly in long-term and home-based settings, due to subjective assessment methods, limited feedback, and low exercise adherence. Recent advances in artificial intelligence (AI) have introduced new opportunities for objective assessment, personalized intervention, and continuous monitoring in exercise rehabilitation.
Objective:This review aims to summarize current applications of AI in exercise rehabilitation, evaluate its effects on motor function and health-related outcomes, identify key challenges, and discuss implications for health promotion and physical education.
Methods:A narrative review approach was employed to synthesize studies on AI-assisted exercise rehabilitation, focusing on movement assessment, personalized training, feedback mechanisms, home-based rehabilitation, and applications across different populations.
Results:Evidence indicates that AI-assisted exercise rehabilitation can improve movement quality, motor function, and exercise adherence. AI-based systems support objective and continuous assessment, enable individualized training programs, and enhance user engagement through real-time feedback. Nevertheless, challenges remain related to data quality, system adaptability, ethical and privacy concerns, professional training, and integration into healthcare and educational systems.
Conclusion:Artificial intelligence represents a promising supportive tool in exercise rehabilitation, offering new possibilities for health promotion and physical education. Although current findings are generally positive, further high-quality research and interdisciplinary collaboration are required to support standardized, ethical, and sustainable implementation.
References
1.Sardari S, Sharifzadeh S, Daneshkhah A, et al. Artificial intelligence for skeleton-based physical rehabilitation action evaluation: A systematic review[J]. Computers in Biology and Medicine, 2023, 158: 106835.
2.Kakavas G, Malliaropoulos N, Pruna R, et al. Artificial intelligence: a tool for sports trauma prediction[J]. Injury, 2020, 51: S63-S65.
3.Rosa J P P. The potential role of artificial intelligence to promote the participation and inclusion in physical exercise and sports for people with disabilities: A narrative review[J]. Journal of Bodywork and Movement Therapies, 2025, 42: 127-131.
4.An R. Artificial intelligence in health and sport sciences: Promise, progress, and prudence[J]. Journal of Sport and Health Science, 2025, 14: 101054.
5.Yang R, Yuan Q, Zhang W, et al. Application of Artificial Intelligence in rehabilitation science: A scientometric investigation Utilizing Citespace[J]. SLAS technology, 2024, 29(4): 100162.
6.Yang Y. Application of wearable devices based on artificial intelligence sensors in sports human health monitoring[J]. Measurement: Sensors, 2024, 33: 101086.
7.Amos D, Godfrey I, Tehranchi S, et al. Does artificial intelligence feedback result in different kinematic and muscle excitation patterns compared to physiotherapist feedback during lower-limb rehabilitation exercises?[J]. Clinical Biomechanics, 2025, 130.
8.Xu T, Baghaei S. Reshaping the future of sports with artificial intelligence: Challenges and opportunities in performance enhancement, fan engagement, and strategic decision-making[J]. Engineering Applications of Artificial Intelligence, 2025, 142: 109912.
9.Rodríguez S, Suarez-Cuervo A N, León-Prieto C. Exercise progressions and regressions in sports training and rehabilitation[J]. Journal of Bodywork and Movement Therapies, 2024, 40: 1879-1889.
10.Reis F J J, Alaiti R K, Vallio C S, et al. Artificial intelligence and Machine Learning approaches in sports: Concepts, applications, challenges, and future perspectives[J]. Brazilian journal of physical therapy, 2024, 28(3): 101083.
11.Wang M, Zhu J, Qian W, et al. Integrating artificial intelligence and gamification in rehabilitation: A scoping review[J]. Entertainment Computing, 2025: 101011.
12.Pareek A, Karlsson J, Martin R K. Machine learning/artificial intelligence in sports medicine: state of the art and future directions[J]. Journal of ISAKOS, 2024, 9(4): 635-644.
13.Lu L, Yang S, Li Q. The interaction of digital economy, artificial intelligence and sports industry development--based on China PVAR analysis of provincial panel data[J]. Heliyon, 2024, 10(4).
14.Li L, Wei Y, Xiang S. Infrared thermal image monitoring based on artificial intelligence application in the prevention of sports injuries in aerobics: Computational thermal modeling[J]. Thermal Science and Engineering Progress, 2025, 57: 103126.
15.Shawli L, Alsobhi M, Chevidikunnan M F, et al. Physical therapists’ perceptions and attitudes towards artificial intelligence in healthcare and rehabilitation: A qualitative study[J]. Musculoskeletal Science and Practice, 2024, 73: 103152.
16.Li W, Liu M, Liu J, et al. A review of artificial intelligence for sports: Technologies and applications[J]. Intelligent Sports and Health, 2025, 1(3): 113-126.
17.Bartlett R. Artificial intelligence in sports biomechanics: New dawn or false hope?[J]. Journal of sports science & medicine, 2006, 5(4): 474.
18.Nadikattu R R. Implementation of new ways of artificial intelligence in sports[J]. Journal of Xidian University, 2020, 14(5): 5983-5997.
19.Novatchkov H, Baca A. Artificial intelligence in sports on the example of weight training[J]. Journal of sports science & medicine, 2013, 12(1): 27.
20.Ramkumar P N, Luu B C, Haeberle H S, et al. Sports medicine and artificial intelligence: a primer[J]. The American Journal of Sports Medicine, 2022, 50(4): 1166-1174.
21.Dhar V. What is the role of artificial intelligence in sports?[J]. Big Data, 2017, 5(3): 173-174.
22.Pottala M. Artificial Intelligence: Artificial Intelligence in Sports[J]. 2018.
23.Zou R. Exploring the role of artificial intelligence in sports injury prevention and rehabilitation[J]. Scalable Computing: Practice and Experience, 2025, 26(1): 316-325.
24.Zeng C, Huang Y, Yu L, et al. Long‐Term Assessment of Rehabilitation Treatment of Sports through Artificial Intelligence Research[J]. Computational and Mathematical Methods in Medicine, 2021, 2021(1): 4980718.
25.Xu J, Xu Z. Artificial Intelligence Algorithms in Sports Rehabilitation Control Management System[C]2024 Second International Conference on Data Science and Information System (ICDSIS). IEEE, 2024: 1-5.
26.Baladaniya M, Choudhary A K. Artificial Intelligence in Sports Science: A Systematic Review on Performance Optimization, Injury Prevention, and Rehabilitation[J]. Journal of Clinical Medicine of Kazakhstan, 2025, 22(3): 64-72.
27.Wang P, Wang A, Wang S. Integrating multimodal AI technologies for sports injury prediction and rehabilitation: Systematic review[J]. Journal of Human Sport and Exercise, 2026, 21(1): 22-37.
28.Chen T, Xian Y, Chen T. Relationship between training load and recovery rate in artificial intelligence-based sports rehabilitation training[J]. Molecular & Cellular Biomechanics, 2025, 22(4).
29.Guelmami N, Fekih-Romdhane F, Mechraoui O, et al. Injury prevention, optimized training and rehabilitation: how is AI reshaping the field of sports medicine[J]. New Asian Journal of Medicine, 2023, 1(1): 30-34.
30.Ling W, Yu G, Li Z. Lower limb exercise rehabilitation assessment based on artificial intelligence and medical big data[J]. IEEE Access, 2019, 7: 126787-126798.
31.Abdelmohsen A M. Artificial Intelligence in Biomechanics: A Narrative Review of Current Applications in Diagnostic and Physical Rehabilitation[J]. Physiotherapy Research International, 2025, 30(4): e70120.
32.Song B, Tuo P. Application of artificial intelligence and virtual reality technology in the rehabilitation training of track and field athletes[J]. Wireless Communications and Mobile Computing, 2022, 2022(1): 9828199.
33.Zhang Q, Gong M, Yu S, et al. Design and Application of Artificial Intelligence-Based Sports Rehabilitation Robot Auxiliary System[C]//2024 5th International Conference on Information Science, Parallel and Distributed Systems (ISPDS). IEEE, 2024: 722-728.
34.Mu P, Dai M, Ma X. Application of artificial intelligence in rehabilitation assessment[C]//Journal of physics: conference series. IOP Publishing, 2021, 1802(3): 032057.
35.Guan L. Intelligent rehabilitation assistant: Application of deep learning methods in sports injury recovery[J]. Molecular & Cellular Biomechanics, 2024, 21(2).
36.Davids J, Lidströmer N, Ashrafian H. Artificial intelligence for physiotherapy and rehabilitation[M]//Artificial intelligence in medicine. Cham: Springer International Publishing, 2022: 1789-1807.
37.Zhang S, Meng Q. Intelligent sports rehabilitation: integrating deep learning and real-time monitoring to achieve personalized rehabilitation[J]. Disability and Rehabilitation: Assistive Technology, 2025: 1-15.
38.Elhawary M F M. Studying The Reality of Using Artificial Intelligence Applications in The Rehabilitation of Sports Injuries[J]. Journal of Theories and Applications of Physical Education Sport Sciences, 2025, 13(1): 34-54.
39.Rigamonti L, Estel K, Gehlen T, et al. Use of artificial intelligence in sports medicine: a report of 5 fictional cases[J]. BMC Sports Science, Medicine and Rehabilitation, 2021, 13(1): 13.
40.Souaifi M, Dhahbi W, Jebabli N, et al. Artificial intelligence in sports biomechanics: A scoping review on wearable technology, motion analysis, and injury prevention[J]. Bioengineering, 2025, 12(8): 887.
41.Li X, Zhang L. Sports Rehabilitation of Patients with Scoliosis Based on Intelligent Data Collection Technology under the Background of Artificial Intelligence[C]//2021 3rd International Conference on Artificial Intelligence and Advanced Manufacture. 2021: 1131-1136.
42.Takáč P. Sports injury rehabilitation: A narrative review of emerging technologies and biopsychosocial approaches[J]. Applied Sciences, 2025, 15(17): 9788.
43.Ahsan M. Chatbot Generative Pre-Trained Transformer and artificial intelligence in sports physical therapy and rehabilitation[J]. Saudi Journal of Sports Medicine, 2023, 23(2): 61-62.
44.Yoo K T. Study on the Field Application and Prospect of Artificial Intelligence and Bio-Sensing Technology in Physical Therapy: Focusing on Customized Rehabilitation Treatment[J]. Korean Society of Physical Medicine, 2023, 18(3): 73-84.
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2026 Zhiming Shi, Junjie Chen, Guangxin Cheng
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
The periodical offers access to content in the Open Access system under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0
Stats
Number of views and downloads: 5
Number of citations: 0
