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. 2019 Feb 4;8(2):184.
doi: 10.3390/jcm8020184.

A Randomized Controlled Trial on the Effects of Aerobic and Coordinative Training on Neural Correlates of Inhibitory Control in Children

Sebastian Ludyga  1 , Flora Koutsandréou  2 , Eva-Maria Reuter  3 , Claudia Voelcker-Rehage  4 , Henning Budde  5   6   7
Affiliations

A Randomized Controlled Trial on the Effects of Aerobic and Coordinative Training on Neural Correlates of Inhibitory Control in Children

Sebastian Ludyga et al. J Clin Med. .

Abstract

Whereas aerobic training has found to be beneficial for inhibitory control, less is known on the efficiency of other exercise types in children. The present study compared the effects of aerobic and coordinative training on behavioral and neurophysiological measures of inhibitory control. Forty-five children were randomly assigned (1:1:1 ratio) to groups performing aerobic training, coordinative training or assisted homework sessions over 10 weeks. Before and after intervention, all participants completed a Flanker task. The P300 component of event-related potentials elicited from the task was recorded via electroencephalography. Additionally, aerobic fitness and gross-motor skills were assessed using 20 m Shuttle Run and Heidelberg Gross-Motor Test, respectively. Statistical analyses revealed no time by group interactions for the P300 component (amplitude, latency), p = 0.976, η² = 0.007, and behavioral performance (reaction time, accuracy), p = 0.570, η² = 0.045. In contrast, there was a significant group-difference in pre- to post-test changes in aerobic fitness, p = 0.008, η² = 0.246, with greater improvements following aerobic and coordinative training compared to assisted homework sessions. In conclusion, no differences regarding the efficiency of aerobic and coordinative training for the enhancement of inhibitory control were found as both exercise programs failed to elicit changes in speed and accuracy of stimulus evaluation and the allocation of attentional resources.

Keywords: Flanker task; P300; aerobic fitness; event-related potentials; executive function; motor skill; physical activity.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest. The funders had no role in the design of the study; in the collection, analyses, or interpretation of data; in the writing of the manuscript, or in the decision to publish the results.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Means and standard deviation for P300 latency ((A) congruent trials; (B) incongruent trials) and amplitude ((C) congruent trials; (D) incongruent trials) in all groups at pre and post-test. Note: AER = aerobic training group; COR = coordinative training group; CON = control group.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Centroparietal event-related potential waveforms of the aerobic ((A) congruent trials; (D) incongruent trials) and coordinative training ((B) congruent trials; (E) incongruent trials) groups as well as the control group ((C) congruent trials; (F) incongruent trials) at pre- and post-test. Note: Waveforms were pooled from Cz, Pz, Cp1, and Cp2.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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