Evidence review: Physical exercise helps boost attention, cognitive flexibility and inhibitory control in children and adolescents with ADHD

Conclusions based on a single study –no matter how strong the study design and execution may be– are necessarily limited, however. This has led researchers to combine results from multiple studies using a statistical technique called meta-analysis so that more robust and reliable estimates of a treatment’s impact can be determined. Meta-analyses also have limitations, however. Decisions made about which studies to include vs. exclude, how to adjust for potential biases in individual studies, etc., can lead different meta-analyses of the same issue to reach somewhat different conclusions, even when the studies examined in each meta-analysis overlap substantially. Umbrella reviews provide an even higher level of synthesis than meta-analysis by statistically combining the results across multiple meta-analyses. Systematic methods are used to grade the quality of individual meta-analyses and decisions about inclusion vs. exclusion are made based on that grading. Other techniques adjust for risk of bias in studies and other potentially confounding factors. Ultimately, this method is intended to provide an even more robust estimate of an intervention’s impact than can be obtained from a single meta-analysis. The new study: A study just published in a recent issue of e Clinical Medicine [The efficacy of physical exercise interventions on mental health, cognitive function, and ADHD symptoms in children and adolescents with ADHD: an umbrella review] presents results from this t...
Source: SharpBrains - Category: Neuroscience Authors: Tags: Attention & ADD/ADHD Brain/ Mental Health Education & Lifelong Learning ADHD-symptoms cognitive-abilities cognitive-function executive functioning Physical-activity Source Type: blogs