Exercise-based interventions for substance abusers are a hot topic in research and clinical practice. However, new scientific reviews argue that the development of clinical recommendations is hampered by a number of methodological concerns and knowledge gaps in the literature.A paper was published in a journal mental health and physical activity.
The aim of a new scientific review was to summarize the evidence on the effectiveness of exercise-based interventions in altering psychiatric symptoms, substance use outcomes, and quality of life in adults with substance abuse or dependence. Substance abuse and dependence is a major public health concern, with high prevalence and alarming suicide and mortality rates.
These conditions are characterized by compulsions, chronic relapses, and are often co-occurring with other disorders such as chronic pain and psychiatric illness. The psychiatric symptoms and consequences of substance abuse for these people are difficult to manage and have a negative impact not only on the economy, justice and health care systems, but also on their quality of life.
Exercise has been suggested as a potential intervention to help people with substance abuse or dependence. Regular physical activity improves self-control and helps cope with symptoms.
“My primary research focus is on psychological (i.e. self-efficacy) and spiritual (i.e. self-efficacy) and spiritual (i.e. meaning of life), which includes factors such as self-perceived well-being and life satisfaction,” said study author Javier Martinez, assistant professor at the University of Seville. Calderon said. Uncertainty, Mindfulness, Self and Spirituality (UMSS) Research Group.
“In this sense, I strongly believe that exercise-based interventions, such as mind-body exercises and all kinds of exercises that we can do, can be very helpful in helping people get to know their bodies better. I believe in connecting with ourselves and improving our mental health.Specifically, I am very interested in the field of addiction because many people with these chronic conditions They often resort to substance abuse (such as opioids) in an attempt to cope with the course of the disease.”
Previous systematic reviews have examined the effectiveness of exercise-based interventions, and some have shown promising results. However, it is still unclear which types of exercise are most beneficial for specific populations and which psychiatric symptoms and consequences of substance abuse can be effectively addressed by exercise.
The researchers conducted a comprehensive search of multiple databases. Eligibility criteria were based on the PICO framework (patients, interventions, comparisons, outcomes, study design). These included systematic reviews evaluating exercise-based interventions using any type of exercise for adults with substance abuse or dependence and comorbidities.
The researchers screened 314 titles and abstracts and selected 18 systematic reviews that met the eligibility criteria. These systematic reviews included a total of 53 meta-analyses and 103 individual clinical trials.
“A number of clinical trials have evaluated the potential effectiveness of exercise-based interventions in this population. I was very surprised and delighted to see how it was being demonstrated,” Martinez Calderón told PsyPost.
Exercise-based interventions are often described using global terms such as ‘exercise’ and ‘physical activity’, with populations and outcomes of interest targeted in areas such as mental health, anxiety, depression, and smoking. expressed using terms.
What types of exercise (e.g., aerobic exercise, yoga-based interventions, strength exercise, or resistance exercise) are most effective for each substance abuse population, and are the most effective for various psychological symptoms and substance abuse The specific exercise intervention that produced an effect remained unclear. result. “In this setting, it is virtually impossible to recommend any particular type of exercise to health professionals,” the researchers wrote.
The researchers also found some methodological concerns and knowledge gaps. The methodological quality of systematic reviews was generally judged to be very low due to issues such as lack of transparency in study selection and the need for supplementary files listing excluded studies.
“Clinical trials on this subject appear to show promising results in improving some outcomes (i.e., psychiatric symptoms) in individuals exhibiting substance abuse/dependence,” explained Martinez-Calderon. bottom. “However, systematic reviews summarizing this primary evidence had many methodological flaws, and the reader should be very careful about the conclusions referred to in these systematic reviews.”
The researchers emphasized the need for future research focused on improving the quality of systematic reviews and increasing the number of high-quality clinical trials. They also called for his GRADE approach to be used in all meta-analyses to better understand the conditions under which clinical recommendations are made.
“In most cases, a systematic review should add an assessment of the certainty of the evidence using a recommendation evaluation, development and evaluation (GRADE) approach,” Martinez Calderón told PsyPost. . “This is probably the most important tool for determining the certainty of results evaluated in systematic reviews and is essential for conducting clinical research in the clinical setting.”
“The synthesis of evidence in the areas of mental health and physical activity needs to be improved,” the researchers added. “Specifically, the methodological quality of the systematic review by meta-analysis. , tried to publish them, but found methodological problems similar to those observed in this overview.”
Paper, “Levels of evidence for physical exercise in the treatment of substance abuse/addiction: an overview of a systematic review including 53 meta-analyses from 103 different clinical trials.was written by Javier Martinez-Calderón, Olga Villar-Alices, Cristina García-Munoz and Javier Matias-Soto.
