Narrative review of the influence of high-intensity interval training on adolescents’ bone health: commentary and perspectives

Although several benefits have been associated to high-intensity interval training (HIIT), there is a lack of clarity on the HIIT effects in adolescents, especially on bone health outcomes. To address this gap, our research aimed to perform a systematic review, which focus on the influence of HIIT on adolescents’ bone health. Our search strategy was conducted on three databases (PubMed, SCOPUS, and Embase). For our review, we included articles with the following characteristics: (I) sample consisting of adolescents (10–19 years old), (II) HIIT interventions; and (III) assessment of bone health outcomes. Longitudinal and clinical trials studies with no language and year of publications restrictions were eligible to be included. A total of 63 eligible studies were identified. After removing the duplicates and screening the titles and abstracts, six articles remained to be read in full text. However, none of the articles met our criteria. Studies in which no article meets the eligibility criteria are also essential and need to be shared with the academic community because it may stimulate appropriate future investigations in this field. This lack in the review results highlights the need for further epidemiological research focusing on this topic, including high quality, large scale, and longitudinal studies, as well as randomized controlled trials to confirm or refute efficacy.