title: Exercise: applications to childhood ADHD.
abstract: ADHD is the most common neurobehavioral disorder of childhood, presenting with pervasive and impairing symptoms of inattention, hyperactivity, impulsivity, or a combination. The leading hypothesis of the underlying physiology of this disorder of inattention and/or hyperactivity-impulsivity is based on catecholamine dysfunction. Pharmacotherapy research indicates that psychostimulants, which are catecholamine agonists, show the greatest efficacy for treating the core symptoms of ADHD. Exercise affects the same dopaminergic and noradrenergic systems that stimulant medications target and is a stressor, which elicits measurable physiological changes. The magnitude of these peripheral alterations is posited as a potential biomarker of ADHD. The hypothesis that exercise training alters the underlying physiology present in ADHD and other medical conditions as well as conceptual issues behind its potential clinical utility is reviewed.
authors.affiliation: University of California, Irvine, USA. sbwigal@uci.edu
authors.forename: Sharon B
authors.initials: SB
authors.lastname: Wigal
authors.forename: Natasha
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Emmerson
authors.forename: Jean-G
authors.initials: JG
authors.lastname: Gehricke
authors.forename: Pietro
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Galassetti
mesh_terms: D001289:Attention Deficit Disorder with Hyperactivity / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000628:therapy*; D000697:Central Nervous System Stimulants / Q000627:therapeutic use; D002648:Child; D015444:Exercise / Q000502:physiology*; D005081:Exercise Therapy / Q000379:methods*; D006801:Humans
chemical_list: D000697:Central Nervous System Stimulants