Lee Youngjun, Guidotti Flavia, Capranica Laura, Pesce Caterina, Benzing Valentin, Hauck Janet, Ciaccioni Simone
Department of Kinesiology, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI, United States.
Department of Movement, Human and Health Sciences, University of Rome "Foro Italico", Rome, Italy.
Front Psychol. 2025 May 1;16:1567978. doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2025.1567978. eCollection 2025.
Children and adolescents with disabilities face increased mental health challenges and lack of access to exercise. Olympic combat sports (OCS) such as judo, taekwondo, and others might encourage social engagement, self-control, and resilience. However, not much is known about their mental health impact on this population.
Following PRISMA-P protocols (PROSPERO registration: CRD42023452489), we searched seven databases for randomized controlled trials or non-randomized trials that evaluated the impact of OCS on mental health in children and adolescents (5-18 years) with developmental or physical disabilities. The key findings fell into 11 domains across mental illness attitudes, social skills, and mental health literacy. We also extracted individual (e.g., age) and social (e.g., family participation) moderating factors. Rob 2.0 (randomized trials) and ROBINS-I (non-randomized trials) were used to measure the risk of bias.
Twelve studies (seven randomized, five controlled trials) conducted during 1975-2022, encompassing 436 participants (11.4 ± 2.8 years), were included. There were significant improvements ( < 0.05) in stereotypy, communication, social-emotional functioning, and executive function, with occasional improvements in self-esteem and stress management. Several experiments reported rapid hormonal changes (e.g., cortisol) immediately after OCS, particularly among adolescents. Family involvement and age emerged as potential moderators, with older children and adolescents with engaged carers likely to benefit even more.
Despite different study protocols, outcomes, and risk-of-bias thresholds, OCS interventions overwhelmingly seem to enhance mental health in children and adolescents with disabilities. More substantial, longer-term trials would be required to validate these findings, explain the processes, and evaluate safety. Programs based on OCS that address disabilities could provide broad pathways to physical activity and psychological development as part of a whole-person developmental model.
This review indicates that OCS interventions have the potential to improve mental health outcomes for children and adolescents with disabilities by increasing social skills and executive functioning while better regulating stress. The diversity of samples and inadequate study designs necessitate additional high-quality research.
https://www.crd.york.ac.uk/PROSPERO/view/CRD42023452489, CRD42023452489.
残疾儿童和青少年面临着更多的心理健康挑战，且缺乏锻炼机会。柔道、跆拳道等奥林匹克格斗运动可能会促进社交参与、自我控制和恢复力。然而，关于这些运动对这一人群心理健康的影响，我们所知甚少。
遵循PRISMA-P协议（PROSPERO注册号：CRD42023452489），我们在七个数据库中搜索了评估奥林匹克格斗运动对发育或身体残疾的儿童和青少年（5至18岁）心理健康影响的随机对照试验或非随机试验。主要研究结果分为精神疾病态度、社交技能和心理健康素养等11个领域。我们还提取了个体（如年龄）和社会（如家庭参与）调节因素。使用Rob 2.0（随机试验）和ROBINS-I（非随机试验）来衡量偏倚风险。
纳入了1975年至2022年期间进行的12项研究（7项随机试验、5项对照试验），涵盖436名参与者（11.4±2.8岁）。刻板行为、沟通、社会情感功能和执行功能有显著改善（P<0.05），自尊和压力管理偶尔也有改善。几项实验报告称，奥林匹克格斗运动后立即出现快速的激素变化（如皮质醇），尤其是在青少年中。家庭参与和年龄成为潜在的调节因素，年龄较大且有参与的照顾者的儿童和青少年可能受益更多。
尽管研究方案、结果和偏倚风险阈值不同，但奥林匹克格斗运动干预似乎绝大多数都能改善残疾儿童和青少年的心理健康。需要更大量、更长期的试验来验证这些发现、解释其过程并评估安全性。基于奥林匹克格斗运动的针对残疾的项目可以作为全人发展模式的一部分，为身体活动和心理发展提供广泛途径。
本综述表明，奥林匹克格斗运动干预有可能通过提高社交技能和执行功能，同时更好地调节压力，改善残疾儿童和青少年的心理健康结果。样本的多样性和研究设计的不足需要更多高质量的研究。
https://www.crd.york.ac.uk/PROSPERO/view/CRD42023452489，CRD42023452489
