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Behavioral and Cognitive Impacts of Mindfulness-Based Interventions on Adults with Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder: A Systematic Review.

Behavioural neurology
January 1, 2019
Hélène Poissant et al. (5 authors)
Journal ArticleSystematic ReviewHuman Study
Study Details

Study Goal

The researchers aimed to systematically review the effectiveness of mindfulness-based interventions (MBIs) in reducing ADHD symptoms and improving related outcomes in adults.

Results Summary

All included studies showed improvement in ADHD symptoms, with additional benefits in executive function and emotion regulation, though methodological biases and study quality limitations were noted.

Population

Adults with ADHD (mean age 35.1 years)

Effective Dosage

Not specified

Duration

Not specified

Interactions

None mentioned

Extracted Claims (4)
InterventionDirectionEndpointPopulationDosageImpactClaim #
Mindfulness-based interventions (MBIs)
decrease
symptoms of attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD)
adults
-
may also be effective in reducing
#1
MBIs
decrease
ADHD symptoms
adults
100%
showed improvement of
#2
mindfulness meditation training
increase
some aspects of executive function
adults with ADHD
-
improves
#3
mindfulness meditation training
decrease
emotion dysregulation
adults with ADHD
-
improves
#4
Abstract

Mindfulness-based interventions (MBIs) are becoming increasingly popular as treatments for physical and psychological problems. Recently, several studies have suggested that MBIs may also be effective in reducing symptoms of attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Most studies have examined the effectiveness in children, but there are now a sufficient number of individual treatment trials to consider a systematic review in adults. Majority of existing systematic reviews and meta-analyses only consider ADHD symptoms as an outcome, and most of them do not fully report potential biases of included studies, thus limiting considerably their conclusions. This is an important facet because some studies could be found ineligible to be included in future analysis due to their low quality. In this systematic review, we followed the PRISMA/PICO criteria and we thoroughly assessed the risks of bias for each of the selected studies according to Cochrane guidelines. We searched the available literature concerning MBIs in adult participants with ADHD using PsycINFO, PubMed, Scopus, and ERIC databases. In total, 13 studies conducted with 753 adults (mean age of 35.1 years) were identified as eligible. Potential moderators such as participants' age, ADHD subtypes, medication status, comorbidity, intervention length, mindfulness techniques, homework amount, and training of therapists were carefully described. Aside from measuring the symptoms of ADHD, outcome measures were categorized into executive/cognitive functioning, emotional disturbances, quality of life, mindfulness, and grade point average at school. According to presented descriptive results, all the studies (100%) showed improvement of ADHD symptoms. In addition, mindfulness meditation training improves some aspects of executive function and emotion dysregulation. Although these are promising findings to support treatment efficacy of MBIs for ADHD, various biases such as absence of randomization and lack of a control group may affect the actual clinical value and implications of the studies. Moreover, the relatively low quality of selection and performance criteria in several studies, as well as relatively high attrition bias across studies, call for caution before considering conducting further analysis.

Medical Subject Headings (MeSH)
AdultAttention Deficit Disorder with HyperactivityCognitionCognitive Behavioral TherapyEmotionsExecutive FunctionFemaleHumansMaleMeditationMental HealthMindfulnessQuality of LifeTreatment Outcome
Study Links
Quality Scores
SafetyNot Assessed
Efficacy75/10
Quality70/10
Citation Metrics
Total Citations31
Citations/Year5.2
Relative Citation Ratio2.47
NIH Percentile80.4%
Research Impact Scores
APT Score0.75
Weight Score2.17
Normalized Score0.64
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