Metaanalyse av effekten av fysisk aktivitet som behandling av angst på et klinisk utvalg

Anxiety disorders are highly prevalent and are frequently under-treated. The majority of those suffering from anxiety disorders do not seek professional help, and the health care system is currently not able to meet the need for treatment. Therefore, development of effective self-help strategies is important. The objective of this meta-analysis was to determine the effectiveness of exercise as an intervention for treatment of anxiety in a clinical population. Computerized searches were conducted in the databases PsycINFO, PubMed and Web of Science from August 2009 to June 2010. In addition, reference sections of relevant articles were searched manually, and experts in the field were contacted per e-mail to ensure that all relevant studies were included and to see if they had any unpublished studies. Analyses were conducted with the software ”Comprehensive Meta-Analysis Version 2”. The meta-analysis included eleven studies with a total of 295 participants, and the results indicated that exercise is associated with large reduction in anxiety-levels. Although physical activity offers therapeutic benefits for reducing anxiety, it remains to be determined precisely why exercise is associated with reduction in anxiety