The Effect of Hippotherapy and Medication on Children with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder: A Pilot Study / 신경정신의학

ABSTRACT

OBJECTIVES: This study researched the clinical effects of hippotherapy and medication in attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) children. METHODS: The study employed an open label randomized controlled trial. Participants were 10 children of ages between 6 and 12 years. These subjects were placed in 2 groups : the hippotherapy group and the medication group. Evaluation tools used in this study include Affective Disorders and Schizophrenia-Present and Lifetime Version- Korean Version, the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children-IV, Korean Child Behavior Check List (K-CBCL), ADHD rating scale (ARS), Clinical Global Impression (CGI), and Quantitative electroencephalography (QEEG). RESULTS: Grossly scores of investigator-administered ADHD rating scale (ARS-I), K-CBCL, and CGI-Severity of Illness scale were improved in both the hippotherapy and the medication group. The ARS-I scores of the Hippotherapy group were not significantly different from baseline after 12 weeks. In the QEEG, theta/beta ratio of Pz area in the hippotherapy group was significantly different from baseline. Children treated with medication showed significant difference from baseline in ARS-I, K-CBCL subscales, and QEEG. CONCLUSION: The use of hippotherapy could be a viable treatment strategy as a part of a multimodal therapy for children with ADHD. This pilot study provides good prospects for future studies to document these positive trends on larger samples.