Cargando…

Muscle strength and executive function in children and adolescents with autism spectrum disorder

The development of effective (non‐pharmacological) treatment approaches for executive dysfunction in autism spectrum disorder (ASD) requires evidence that factors influencing this domain can be modified by behavioral interventions. The present cross‐sectional study investigated the relative associat...

Descripción completa

Detalles Bibliográficos
Autores principales: Ludyga, Sebastian, Pühse, Uwe, Gerber, Markus, Mücke, Manuel
Formato: Online Artículo Texto
Lenguaje:English
Publicado: John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 2021
Materias:
Acceso en línea:https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9292567/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/34351051
http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/aur.2587
_version_ 1784749403146289152
author Ludyga, Sebastian
Pühse, Uwe
Gerber, Markus
Mücke, Manuel
author_facet Ludyga, Sebastian
Pühse, Uwe
Gerber, Markus
Mücke, Manuel
author_sort Ludyga, Sebastian
collection PubMed
description The development of effective (non‐pharmacological) treatment approaches for executive dysfunction in autism spectrum disorder (ASD) requires evidence that factors influencing this domain can be modified by behavioral interventions. The present cross‐sectional study investigated the relative associations of ASD, muscle strength and body mass index with executive function and information processing among the Healthy Brain Network cohort. Patients with ASD (N = 174) and healthy peers (N = 202) aged 5 to 18 years completed cognitive tasks of the NIH toolbox (Pattern Comparison, Flanker, List Sorting, Card Sorting) to assess core components of executive function and information processing. Additionally, anthropometrics and muscle strength were collected from selected items (push‐ups, curl‐ups, trunk lift, and grip strength) of the Fitnessgram battery. Based on structural equation modeling, ASD was related to impaired muscle strength and executive function, when confounders (age, sex, pubertal status, and socioeconomic status) were accounted for. Muscle strength further showed independent contributions to information processing and executive function. This association was moderated by ASD, so that higher muscle strength was related to higher executive function in ASD patients only. The present findings provide a first indication that the promotion of muscle strength may have the potential to generally enhance information processing and to reduce ASD‐related executive dysfunction in children and adolescents. LAY SUMMARY: In comparison to healthy peers, children with ASD showed impairments in executive function and muscle strength. Moreover, higher muscle strength was independently associated with better executive function, but only in ASD patients. This is a first indication that the promotion of muscle strength, for example, by regular exercise, could contribute to a reduction of ASD‐related executive dysfunction.
format Online
Article
Text
id pubmed-9292567
institution National Center for Biotechnology Information
language English
publishDate 2021
publisher John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
record_format MEDLINE/PubMed
spelling pubmed-92925672022-07-20 Muscle strength and executive function in children and adolescents with autism spectrum disorder Ludyga, Sebastian Pühse, Uwe Gerber, Markus Mücke, Manuel Autism Res PSYCHOLOGY The development of effective (non‐pharmacological) treatment approaches for executive dysfunction in autism spectrum disorder (ASD) requires evidence that factors influencing this domain can be modified by behavioral interventions. The present cross‐sectional study investigated the relative associations of ASD, muscle strength and body mass index with executive function and information processing among the Healthy Brain Network cohort. Patients with ASD (N = 174) and healthy peers (N = 202) aged 5 to 18 years completed cognitive tasks of the NIH toolbox (Pattern Comparison, Flanker, List Sorting, Card Sorting) to assess core components of executive function and information processing. Additionally, anthropometrics and muscle strength were collected from selected items (push‐ups, curl‐ups, trunk lift, and grip strength) of the Fitnessgram battery. Based on structural equation modeling, ASD was related to impaired muscle strength and executive function, when confounders (age, sex, pubertal status, and socioeconomic status) were accounted for. Muscle strength further showed independent contributions to information processing and executive function. This association was moderated by ASD, so that higher muscle strength was related to higher executive function in ASD patients only. The present findings provide a first indication that the promotion of muscle strength may have the potential to generally enhance information processing and to reduce ASD‐related executive dysfunction in children and adolescents. LAY SUMMARY: In comparison to healthy peers, children with ASD showed impairments in executive function and muscle strength. Moreover, higher muscle strength was independently associated with better executive function, but only in ASD patients. This is a first indication that the promotion of muscle strength, for example, by regular exercise, could contribute to a reduction of ASD‐related executive dysfunction. John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 2021-08-05 2021-12 /pmc/articles/PMC9292567/ /pubmed/34351051 http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/aur.2587 Text en © 2021 The Authors. Autism Research published by International Society for Autism Research and Wiley Periodicals LLC. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/This is an open access article under the terms of the http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/) License, which permits use, distribution and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited and is not used for commercial purposes.
spellingShingle PSYCHOLOGY
Ludyga, Sebastian
Pühse, Uwe
Gerber, Markus
Mücke, Manuel
Muscle strength and executive function in children and adolescents with autism spectrum disorder
title Muscle strength and executive function in children and adolescents with autism spectrum disorder
title_full Muscle strength and executive function in children and adolescents with autism spectrum disorder
title_fullStr Muscle strength and executive function in children and adolescents with autism spectrum disorder
title_full_unstemmed Muscle strength and executive function in children and adolescents with autism spectrum disorder
title_short Muscle strength and executive function in children and adolescents with autism spectrum disorder
title_sort muscle strength and executive function in children and adolescents with autism spectrum disorder
topic PSYCHOLOGY
url https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9292567/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/34351051
http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/aur.2587
work_keys_str_mv AT ludygasebastian musclestrengthandexecutivefunctioninchildrenandadolescentswithautismspectrumdisorder
AT puhseuwe musclestrengthandexecutivefunctioninchildrenandadolescentswithautismspectrumdisorder
AT gerbermarkus musclestrengthandexecutivefunctioninchildrenandadolescentswithautismspectrumdisorder
AT muckemanuel musclestrengthandexecutivefunctioninchildrenandadolescentswithautismspectrumdisorder