Evidence map›Paper›PMID 40083436›Full record

ReviewFrontiers in pediatrics2025

The impact of physical exercise interventions on social, behavioral, and motor skills in children with autism: a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials.

YanAn Wang, Guoping Qian, Sujie Mao, Shikun Zhang

Abstract readReview
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Review in Frontiers in pediatrics, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 16 papers, 5 of them syntheses that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
16citing papers in PubMed, 5 pooled it
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

16 citing papers in PubMed, 5 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.

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4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

4 authors.

YanAn WangStudent Affairs Office, Jiangsu Police University, Jiangsu Police Institute, Nanjing, Jiangsu, China.
Guoping QianDepartment of Fitness, Gdansk University of Physical Education and Sport, Gdansk, Poland.
Sujie MaoGraduate School, Harbin Institute of Physical Education, Harbin Sport University, Harbin, Heilongjiang, China.
Shikun ZhangStudent Affairs Office, Jiangsu Police University, Jiangsu Police Institute, Nanjing, Jiangsu, China.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Background: Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) is a neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by social impairments, sensory processing issues, repetitive behavior patterns, motor abnormalities, and executive function impairments. Objective: To systematically review and meta-analyze the effects of various exercise modalities on flexibility and cognitive control, social skills, behavioral problems, motor skills, and coordination in children with ASD, providing scientific evidence for clinical practice to guide effective exercise interventions for children with ASD. Methods: Literature searches were conducted in PubMed, EMbase, Cochrane Library, EBSCOhost, and Web of Science databases, covering the period from database inception to February 15, 2024. Inclusion criteria included studies involving children with ASD, any form of exercise intervention, reporting at least one ASD-related outcome, and designed as randomized controlled trials (RCTs) or quasi-experimental studies. Exclusion criteria included reviews, conference abstracts, commentary articles, and studies lacking sufficient statistical data for meta-analysis. Study quality was assessed using the PEDro scale. Effect sizes were calculated using standardized mean differences (SMD). Heterogeneity was assessed with the Results: 23 RCTs were included in this study, showing positive effects of exercise interventions in various domains.Upper grade students showed significant improvement in flexibility and cognitive control (SMD = -0.282, Conclusion: Exercise interventions significantly improve flexibility, cognitive control, motor skills, coordination, social skills, and behavioral problems in children with ASD. This study supports exercise interventions as an effective method to enhance multiple abilities in children with ASD and emphasizes the importance of designing personalized intervention programs tailored to different ages and needs. Future research should focus on larger sample sizes and long-term follow-ups to confirm the sustainability and generalizability of intervention effects.

Indexed as

autismchildrenexercise interventionmotor skillsphysical activitysocial skills

Identifiers

PMID40083436
PMCPMC11903732

What OpenQuestion holds

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Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.