scholarly journals Effects of an 8-week yoga program on sustained attention and discrimination function in children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder

PeerJ ◽  
2017 ◽  
Vol 5 ◽  
pp. e2883 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chien-Chih Chou ◽  
Chung-Ju Huang

This study investigated whether a yoga exercise intervention influenced the sustained attention and discrimination function in children with ADHD. Forty-nine participants (mean age = 10.50 years) were assigned to either a yoga exercise or a control group. Participants were given the Visual Pursuit Test and Determination Test prior to and after an eight-week exercise intervention (twice per week, 40 min per session) or a control intervention. Significant improvements in accuracy rate and reaction time of the two tests were observed over time in the exercise group compared with the control group. These findings suggest that alternative therapies such as yoga exercises can be complementary to behavioral interventions for children with attention and inhibition problems. Schools and parents of children with ADHD should consider alternatives for maximizing the opportunities that children with ADHD can engage in structured yoga  exercises.

Author(s):  
Mahdiyeh Eslami Nosratabadi ◽  
◽  
Mandana Sangari ◽  
Masoud Mirmoezzi ◽  
◽  
...  

Objectives: Attention Deficit/ Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) is one of the most common nervous disorders in childhood. The purpose of this study was to investigate effect of cognitive rehabilitation, physical and concurrent training on sustained, selective and shifting attention in ADHD children. Materials and Methods: The study participants included 40 children aged 9-12 years old who were randomly divided into four groups of cognitive rehabilitation training, physical training, combined (physical-cognitive) training and control group. The attendees trained for 16 minutes and each session for 60 minutes. Posttest was performed 24 and 72 hours later. Results: The results of Covariance analysis showed that, the sustained, selective and transitional attention of the combined practice group (physical rehabilitation) have significantly lower error than another group. In the deletion response variable, the mean score of the withdrawal response in the children of the combined exercise group was significantly lower than that of the control group (p <0.05). Conclusion: Overall, the results of this study showed that cognitive rehabilitation and physical trainings can improve attention in children with overactive disorders. But the combination of physical trainings with rehabilitation trainings can improve the types of attention in children with ADHD.


2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (4) ◽  
pp. 475
Author(s):  
Szabina Velő ◽  
Ágnes Keresztény ◽  
Gyöngyvér Ferenczi-Dallos ◽  
Luca Pump ◽  
Katalin Móra ◽  
...  

Several recent studies confirmed that Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) has a negative influence on peer relationship and quality of life in children. The aim of the current study is to investigate the association between prosocial behaviour, peer relationships and quality of life in treatment naïve ADHD samples. The samples included 79 children with ADHD (64 boys and 15 girls, mean age = 10.24 years, SD = 2.51) and 54 healthy control children (30 boys and 23 girls, mean age = 9.66 years, SD = 1.73). Measurements included: The “Mini International Neuropsychiatric Interview Kid; Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire” and the “Inventar zur Erfassung der Lebensqualität bei Kindern und Jugendlichen”. The ADHD group showed significantly lower levels of prosocial behaviour and more problems with peer relationships than the control group. Prosocial behaviour has a weak positive correlation with the rating of the child’s quality of life by the parents, both in the ADHD group and in the control group. The rating of quality of life and peer relationship problems by the parents also showed a significant negative moderate association in both groups. The rating of quality of life by the child showed a significant negative weak relationship with peer relationships in the ADHD group, but no significant relationship was found in the control group. Children with ADHD and comorbid externalizing disorders showed more problems in peer relationships than ADHD without comorbid externalizing disorders. Based on these results, we conclude that therapy for ADHD focused on improvement of prosocial behaviour and peer relationships as well as comorbid externalizing disorders could have a favourable effect on the quality of life of these children.


Life ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (4) ◽  
pp. 292
Author(s):  
Lina Zhu ◽  
Qian Yu ◽  
Fabian Herold ◽  
Boris Cheval ◽  
Xiaoxiao Dong ◽  
...  

Cardiorespiratory fitness (CRF) is assumed to exert beneficial effects on brain structure and executive control (EC) performance. However, empirical evidence of exercise-induced cognitive enhancement is not conclusive, and the role of CRF in younger adults is not fully understood. Here, we conducted a study in which healthy young adults took part in a moderate aerobic exercise intervention program for 9 weeks (exercise group; n = 48), or control condition of non-aerobic exercise intervention (waitlist control group; n = 72). Before and after the intervention period maximal oxygen uptake (VO2max) as an indicator of CRF, the Flanker task as a measure of EC performance and grey matter volume (GMV), as well as cortical thickness via structural magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), were assessed. Compared to the control group, the CRF (heart rate, p < 0.001; VO2max, p < 0.001) and EC performance (congruent and incongruent reaction time, p = 0.011, p < 0.001) of the exercise group were significantly improved after the 9-week aerobic exercise intervention. Furthermore, GMV changes in the left medial frontal gyrus increased in the exercise group, whereas they were significantly reduced in the control group. Likewise, analysis of cortical morphology revealed that the left lateral occipital cortex (LOC.L) and the left precuneus (PCUN.L) thickness were considerably increased in the exercise group, which was not observed in the control group. The exploration analysis confirmed that CRF improvements are linked to EC improvement and frontal grey matter changes. In summary, our results support the idea that regular endurance exercises are an important determinant for brain health and cognitive performance even in a cohort of younger adults.


2007 ◽  
Vol 125 (1) ◽  
pp. 22-28 ◽  
Author(s):  
Claudio Battaglini ◽  
Martim Bottaro ◽  
Carolyn Dennehy ◽  
Logan Rae ◽  
Edgar Shields ◽  
...  

CONTEXT AND OBJECTIVE: Changes in metabolism have been reported in the majority of patients undergoing cancer treatment, and these are usually characterized by progressive change in body composition. The effects of aerobic exercise programs to combat the cancer and cancer treatment-related side effects, which include the negative changes in body composition, have been extensively reported in the literature. However, few resistance exercise intervention studies have hypothesized that breast cancer patients might benefit from this type of exercise. The purpose of this study was to determine whether exercise protocols that emphasize resistance training would change body composition and strength in breast cancer patients undergoing treatment. DESIGN AND SETTING: Randomized controlled trial, at the Campus Recreation Center and Rocky Mountain Cancer Rehabilitation Institute of the University of Northern Colorado, and the North Colorado Medical Center. METHODS: Twenty inactive breast cancer patients were randomly assigned to a 21-week exercise group (n = 10) or a control group (n = 10). The exercise group trained at low to moderate intensity for 60 minutes on two days/week. The primary outcome measurements included body composition (skinfold method) and muscle strength (one repetition maximum). RESULTS: Significant differences in lean body mass, body fat and strength (p = 0.004, p = 0.004, p = 0.025, respectively) were observed between the groups at the end of the study. CONCLUSION: The results suggest that exercise emphasizing resistance training promotes positive changes in body composition and strength in breast cancer patients undergoing treatment.


2014 ◽  
Vol 29 (4) ◽  
pp. 181-188 ◽  
Author(s):  
Cliffton Chan ◽  
Tim Driscoll ◽  
Bronwen J Ackermann

PURPOSE: To evaluate the effect of a purpose-designed exercise program on performance-related musculoskeletal disorders (PRMDs) and associated risk factors in a sample of professional orchestral musicians. METHODS: A 10-week exercise program was made available to full-time musicians employed by the eight premier symphony orchestras of Australia. Questionnaires were administered before, immediately after (T1), and 6 months after interventions (T2) containing questions relating to change in frequency and severity of PRMDs, ratings of perceived exertion (RPE) during rehearsal, private practice, and performance, as well as nine performance-related factors. Participants were also asked to rate whether these performance-related factors affected their overall playing capacity during different playing situations. A comparative control group of musicians had no intervention and completed a modified questionnaire at the same time points. RESULTS: Exercise participants (n=30) reported a reduction in frequency (p<0.05) and severity (p<0.05) of PRMDs at T1 but not at T2 compared to controls (n=23). The exercise group reported a significant improvement in RPE during private practice at T1 (p<0.01) and T2 (p<0.01), but not during rehearsal and performance. At T1, the intervention was rated to be moderately to highly effective for three performance-related factors: strengthening muscles that support playing, learning techniques that support playing, and posture. Further, participants reported an intervention effect on overall playing capacity during rehearsal at T1 and T2. CONCLUSIONS: A tailored exercise program for musicians was effective at managing PRMDs, especially in reducing the frequency and severity of PRMDs. Physical therapy exercises should be considered in modifying performance-related factors that have been reported to be predictors of PRMDs.


2018 ◽  
Vol 1 (4) ◽  
Author(s):  
Qi Peng ◽  
Jiaqin Chen ◽  
Wei Chen ◽  
Chang Feng Shao ◽  
Afang Yuan

Objective To investigate the effects of long-term regular exercise on hepatic function in patients with non-alcoholic fatty liver (NAFLD) using blood biochemistry and liver fibrosis markers, and to compare the differential expression of cytokines related to TLR4/NF-KB signaling pathway. A preliminary discussion was made on its regulation mechanism. Methods Forty patients with NAFLD diagnosed in the Hunan Normal University School of Medicine, according to the degree of steatosis and exercise intervention, the patients were divided into control group (NAFLD group) 20 cases and long-term regular exercise group 20 cases, and the same time in our hospital Twenty patients with physical examination were normal controls; general data of all subjects, ALT, AST, GGT, serum type III procollagen (PCIII), hyaluronan (HA), and type IV collagen (CIV) were examined; Fluorescent quantitative PCR was used to detect the differential expression of TLR4/NF-KB signaling pathway-related cytokines and miR-146a in the blood of each group of subjects, revealing the effects and possible mechanisms of long-term regular exercise on liver fibrosis. Results Compared with the normal group, the levels of serum ALT, AST, GGT, PCIII, HA, and CIV in the non-alcoholic fatty liver patients were significantly lower in the long-term regular exercise group than in the control group; blood TLR4, NF-KB, MY-D88 Compared with the control group, the gene expression level was significantly downregulated in the long-term regular exercise group.  Conclusions Long-term regular exercise can effectively reduce nonalcoholic inflammatory liver injury and has a clear anti-fibrotic effect. Its mechanism may be related to long-term regular exercise through regulating the TLR4/NF-KB signaling pathway related factors and the regulation of molecular miR-146a, reducing inflammation and preventing the formation of fibrosis.


2020 ◽  
pp. 108705472092813
Author(s):  
Myrte J. M. van Langen ◽  
Branko M. van Hulst ◽  
Miriam Douma ◽  
Maarten Steffers ◽  
Nicolle M. H. van de Wiel ◽  
...  

Objective: This article aims to assess whether individual differences in reward sensitivity can be used to predict which children with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) will benefit most from behavioral interventions that include reinforcement. Methods: A 12-week behavioral intervention was offered to 21 children with ADHD and their parents. Reward sensitivity was assessed prior to the intervention using a combination of psychological and physiological measures. ADHD symptoms were assessed pre- and posttreatment using the Strengths and Weaknesses of ADHD and Normal behavior (SWAN) rating scale. Results: Lower scores on one of the questionnaire scales were associated with greater pre/posttreatment differences in ADHD symptoms. Conclusion: We found that pre/posttreatment change was associated with one measure of parent-rated reward sensitivity. Children with low impulsive negative behavior toward gaining reward improved most during treatment. This result suggests that aspects of reward-related behaviors in ADHD may be useful to predict the effectiveness of treatment.


2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (11) ◽  
pp. 803
Author(s):  
Kelong Cai ◽  
Qian Yu ◽  
Fabian Herold ◽  
Zhimei Liu ◽  
Jingui Wang ◽  
...  

Impairments in social communication (SC) represent one of the core symptoms of autism spectrum disorder (ASD). While previous studies have demonstrated that exercise intervention improves SC in children with ASD, there is currently no neuroscientific evidence supporting its benefits. Therefore, we evaluated the outcomes of a long-term exercise intervention on SC and white matter integrity (WMI) in children with ASD, and further explored the neural mechanism of exercise intervention on SC in these children. Twenty-nine children aged 3–6 years with ASD were assigned to either exercise group (n = 15) or control group (n = 14). The exercise group received a scheduled mini-basketball training program (5 sessions per week, forty minutes per session) for 12 consecutive weeks, while the control group was instructed to maintain their daily activities. Groups were assessed before and after intervention on SC and WMI. SC scores were lower in the exercise group post-intervention. Compared with the control group, WMI of the exercise group showed higher fractional anisotropy in the body of corpus callosum, fornix, right cerebral peduncle, left posterior limb of internal capsule, right retrolenticular part of internal capsule, left anterior corona radiate and left superior fronto-occipital fasciculus; lower mean diffusivity in the left anterior corona radiate and the bilateral corticospinal tract. Furthermore, increased WMI was associated with lower scores on a measure of social cognition in the overall sample. This study is the first to provide evidence that exercise intervention improves SC and white matter integrity in children with autism.


2020 ◽  
Vol 9 (5) ◽  
pp. 1312
Author(s):  
Seongryu Bae ◽  
Kenji Harada ◽  
Sangyoon Lee ◽  
Kazuhiro Harada ◽  
Keitaro Makino ◽  
...  

The aim of this study was to examine cortical thickness changes associated with a multicomponent exercise intervention combining physical exercise and cognitive training in older adults with cognitive decline. This study involved a secondary analysis of neuroimaging data from a randomized controlled trial with 280 older adults having cognitive decline who were randomly assigned to either a multicomponent exercise group (n = 140) that attended weekly 90-minute exercise and cognitive training sessions or a health education control group (n = 140). The cortical thickness and cognitive performance were assessed at the baseline and at trial completion (10 months). The cortical thickness in the frontal and temporal regions was determined using FreeSurfer software. Cognitive performance was evaluated using the Gerontology-Functional Assessment Tool (NCGG-FAT). The cortical thickness significantly increased in the middle temporal (p < 0.001) and temporal pole (p < 0.001) in the multicomponent exercise group compared with the control group. Cortical thickness changes were significantly associated with change in trail making test (TMT)-A, TMT-B, and story memory after a 10-month multicomponent exercise intervention. This study suggests that multicomponent exercise programs combining physical exercise and cognitive training have important implications for brain health, especially in providing protection from age-related cortical thinning.


2020 ◽  
pp. 108705472091198
Author(s):  
Phoebe Thomson ◽  
Katherine A. Johnson ◽  
Charles B. Malpas ◽  
Daryl Efron ◽  
Emma Sciberras ◽  
...  

Objective: To characterize head movements in children with ADHD using an ex-Gaussian distribution and examine associations with out-of-scanner sustained attention. Method: Fifty-six children with ADHD and 61 controls aged 9 to 11 years completed the Sustained Attention to Response Task (SART) and resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI). In-scanner head motion was calculated using ex-Gaussian estimates for mu, sigma, and tau in delta variation signal and framewise displacement. Sustained attention was evaluated through omission errors and tau in response time on the SART. Results: Mediation analysis revealed that out-of-scanner attention lapses (omissions during the SART) mediated the relationship between ADHD diagnosis and in-scanner head motion (tau in delta variation signal), indirect effect: B = 1.29, 95% confidence interval (CI) = [0.07, 3.15], accounting for 29% of the association. Conclusion: Findings suggest a critical link between trait-level sustained attention and infrequent large head movements during scanning (tau in head motion) and highlight fundamental challenges in measuring the neural basis of sustained attention.


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