Fysisk aktivitets indvirkninger på ADHD-symptomer og sekundære symptomer hos voksne diagnosticeret med ADHD: Et mixed-method systematisk review
Oversat titel
The Influence of Physical Activity on ADHD Symptoms and Secondary Symptoms in Adults Diagnosed with ADHD: A Mixed-Methods Systematic Review
Forfatter
Semester
4. semester
Uddannelse
Udgivelsesår
2025
Afleveret
2026-01-05
Antal sider
69
Abstract
Background: Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) is a neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by inattention, hyperactivity/impulsivity. Pharmacological treatment is the first-line treatment for adults with ADHD. However, there are several negative side effects associated with this treatment. Therefore, it seems relevant to investigate the possibilities for other non-pharmacological treatments. In this regard, physical activity seems to be effective in reducing core symptoms of ADHD in children, but research into the effect in adults with ADHD is still limited. Objectives: this mixed-method systematic review investigated whether there is a psychological effect of physical activity on ADHD symptoms and secondary symptoms in adults diagnosed with ADHD, and whether this potential effect is linked to specific types of physical activity. Methods: studies were identified through a systematic search in the electronic databases PubMed, PsycInfo, Embase, ERIC, SportDiscus, and CINAHL. 3,098 studies were initially identified and screened based on the inclusion and exclusion criteria. A total of 17 studies were included (three qualitative, 14 quantitative and no mixed-method studies). All included studies were assessed using the MMAT quality assessment tool. The GRADE quality assessment tool was used to assess the strength of evidence for each outcome across the quantitative studies. A convergent segregated approach was used to synthesize the individual analyses from the qualitative and quantitative studies. Results: the qualitative studies generally appeared to have a high degree of robustness in the MMAT quality assessment, while the quantitative studies generally had a moderate degree. The synthesis revealed that both the quantitative and qualitative studies found a positive impact on participants' ADHD symptoms as well as on secondary symptoms. However, there were also isolated findings, for example, one qualitative study found that physical activity could have addictive-like effects. The quantitative studies found that a mixture of aerobic and anaerobic physical activity with moderate to high intensity was beneficial in reducing ADHD symptoms and secondary. This was particularly true for interval training interventions, which were found to have moderate to large effect sizes on the following outcome measures: ADHD symptoms (inattention and hyperactivity/impulsivity), executive functions, symptoms of depression, sleep quality and quality of life measurements. However, there were also a handful of studies that found mixed results, and a small number that found no evidence of effect. The GRADE assessment for the quantitative outcomes showed the following results across the included studies: for the outcomes, executive functions, anxiety and emotion regulation, a very low quality of evidence was found. The outcomes of ADHD-symptoms (inattention and hyperactivity/impulsivity), stress, sleep quality and quality of life, was shown to be of low quality of evidence. Lastly, the outcome, depression was assessed to be of high quality of evidence. The primary reason for downgrading was risk of bias, inconsistency and imprecision. The final GRADE recommendation therefore ended up being a weak recommendation. Discussion: Despite weak GRADE-recommendation, there still seems to be significant contributions from the overall research results, including that: physical activity can be an alternative for adults with ADHD who do not have optimal effect of pharmacological treatment, limited harms of physical activity and positive physiological and psychological effects (especially positive effects on comorbid secondary symptoms). Conclusion: This systematic review contributed with an update on the effects of physical activity on ADHD symptoms and secondary symptoms in adults with ADHD. The findings suggest that physical activity can have positive effects on ADHD symptoms and secondary symptoms. Furthermore, the review has contributed with an overview of which types of physical activity seem to have the greatest impact on ADHD symptoms and secondary symptoms in adults with ADHD. However, as is evident from the weak GRADE recommendation, more research in the area is needed to substantiate the results of this mixed-method systematic review.
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