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- All Subjects: Exercise
- Member of: Barrett, The Honors College Thesis/Creative Project Collection
Description
This study examines the effect of exercise therapy on a stationary bike on cognitive function, specifically inhibition and set-switching, in adolescents with Down syndrome. 44 participants were randomly divided between the voluntary cycling therapy group (VCT) (i.e., self-selected cadence), assisted cycling therapy group (ACT) (i.e., 30% faster than self-selected cadence accomplished by a motor), and a control group (NC) in which the participants did not undergo any exercise therapy. Both cycling groups rode a stationary bicycle, for 30 minutes, three times a week, for eight-weeks. At the beginning (i.e., pretest) and end (i.e., posttest) of the eight-week session the participants completed tasks to evaluate their cognitive function. They completed three trials of the card sort test (i.e., set-switching) and three trials of the knock-tap test (i.e, inhibition) before and after eight-weeks of cycling therapy. The scores of these tests were analyzed using one-way ANOVA between groups and paired samples t-tests. The results showed that after eight-weeks of cycling therapy the participants in the VCT group performed worse in the knock-tap test, but improved in two trials of the card sort test. The results also showed that the participants in the ACT group performed worse after eight-weeks of exercise therapy in one trial of the card sort test. No significant changes were seen for the control group. Due to the fact that on average the participants in the VCT group cycled with a higher heart rate, our results suggest exercise that significantly elevates heart rate can improve cognitive function, specifically set-switching, in adolescents with Down syndrome.
ContributorsBenson, Alicia Meigh (Author) / Ringenbach, Shannon (Thesis director) / Amazeen, Eric (Committee member) / Maraj, Brian (Committee member) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor) / School of Life Sciences (Contributor)
Created2015-05
Description
The purpose of the study was to examine the effectiveness of two modes of exercise on the lower body strength and aerobic capacity in adults with Down syndrome (DS). Six participants randomly completed one of two exercise interventions: 1) Voluntary Cycling (VC), where participants cycled at their self-selected pedaling rate and 2) Assisted Cycling Therapy (ACT), where the participants' voluntary pedaling rates were augmented by 35% with a motor. In each intervention, the participant completed three, 30-minute cycling sessions each week for a total of eight weeks. The Six-Minute Walk Test (6MWT) was used to evaluate the distance each participant was able to complete in six minutes before and after the intervention. There was a significant increase in the distance and velocity of the participants after the intervention with a greater mean improvement for participants in the ACT group than VC when analyzing total score and t-score. Future research will include a greater sample size and control group to reach significant results as well as try and reveal the mechanisms involved in these physical health improvements found after an acute bout of assisted cycling in adults with DS.
ContributorsGanger, Rachel O (Author) / Ringenbach, Shannon (Thesis director) / Der Ananian, Cheryl (Committee member) / School of Nutrition and Health Promotion (Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2015-12