Non-pharmacological intervention on inhibitory control in adolescents with ADHD

Abstract

One of the main neuropsychological features in Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) are the failures in executive functioning, especially inhibitory control (IC), which is important for the stopping of an ongoing response, permits a delay in the decision to respond and protects this period of time. Due to these deficits, teenage population with ADHD are more susceptible to present behaviors such as substance abuse, high-risk sexual behavior and the presence of comorbidities. The aim of the present study was to conduct a review of the last 10 years about the non-pharmacological interventions on IC in adolescents with ADHD. An electronic search was made in Scopus, PubMed and Web of Sciences databases, combining the next keywords: “intervention”, “inhibitory control”, “adolescents”, “teenagers” and “ADHD”. Articles were selected from 2010 to 2020. Transcranial magnetic stimulation was the most reported non-pharmacological intervention for enhancing the IC in adolescents with ADHD, followed by physical exercise and neurofeedback. The lack of literature about this topic is a relevant issue to generate future research lines about the treatment of executive functions in adolescents with ADHD.