Does aerobic exercise affect memory, attention, working memory, and fatigue after acquired brain injury? A single-blinded, randomized controlled pilot study
Abstract
Objective: To explore potential effects of aerobic exercise on cognitive function, fatigue, and neuroplasticity after stroke or traumatic brain injury.
Design: A randomized controlled pilot study.
Subjects/patients: Twelve participants, 10 men and 2 women aged 16-65 years diagnosed with acquired brain injury (moderate to severe stroke or traumatic brain injury), enrolled in an outpatient rehabilitation programme at least 3 months post-injury.
Methods: The intervention group (n = 6) participated in 30 min of aerobic exercise 3-4 times/week for 8 weeks during their outpatient rehabilitation. The control group (n = 6) received routine physical therapy. In addition, both groups received rehabilitation according to their rehabilitation plan. Neuropsychological and endurance testing was performed before and after the intervention and at a 3-month follow-up. Functional magnetic resonance imaging was performed before and after the intervention.
Results: Preliminary findings show no significant difference between the groups regarding cognitive variables, fatigue, or neuroplasticity. However, working memory/executive demanding processing speed, measured with the Paced Auditory Serial Addition Test, improved significantly (p = 0.042) in the aerobic exercise group and there were trends of improvements on several other executive tests in the aerobic exercise group. Automatic visual search speed improved in the control group (p = 0.027).
Conclusion: The question of whether aerobic…
How strong is the evidence?
Evidence Hub reads this as a randomized trial, done in people. Its evidence level is 3 of 5 (Moderate · trial / cohort / secondary analysis). Trials without a large randomized design, cohorts and secondary analyses give moderate evidence. Reported size: 10 participants or records.
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