Benefits of hypotherapy for people with Attention Deficit and Hyperactivity Disorder in school age. Exploratory systematic review

Abstract

This research document aimed to carry out a structured exploratory systematic review based on the results found around the term Hippotherapy and Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder. For the search for scientific publications, the following keywords were used as descriptors: Hippotherapy and “ADHD”. The terms were entered in computerized databases Scopus, Web of Science and Pubmed. Also, only Scientific journal articles up to March 2021 were considered. To limit the search, four inclusion criteria were introduced: i) Select the only article from scientific journals, ii) Mention at least some of the characteristics of Hippotherapy for people with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (minimum 50 words), iii) Be in writing in Spanish, English or Portuguese and, iiii) be in full text or with abstract availability. After the Registration Procedure for the studies and data analysis, eleven documents related to the subject were selected that show equestrian therapies are a beneficial tool for people with ADHD in school age. Also, mainly the documents are Experimental studies with quantitative methodology (n=9), and Theoretical studies (n=2). Finally, the benefits of Hippotherapy are directly related to improving the quality of life of people with ADHD in school age.