Effectiveness of Aerobic Exercise–Based Interventions in Children Exposed to Sexual Abuse

Aim: Child sexual abuse exerts severe psychological and physiological effects on victims, frequently resulting in enduring and complex mental health difficulties throughout the lifespan. For this purpose, we examined the impact of physiotherapy-based aerobic exercise interventions on selected indicators of post-traumatic stress, physical activity levels and flexibility in children who have experienced sexual abuse.Method: The study was designed with three groups, comprising a total of 34 participants. The groups included a control group, a home-exercise group, and a physiotherapist-guided exercise group, each receiving a 12-week intervention. Post-traumatic stress symptoms (Adolescent Dissociative Experiences Scale, A-DES), physical activity level (Physical Activity Questionnaire for Older Children, PAQ-C) and flexibility (Trunk Lateral Flexion Test) were assessed both before and after the intervention period.Results: Statistically significant improvements were observed in the Trunk Lateral Flexion Test in all groups (p<0.05). However, no statistically significant intra- or intergroup differences were found for dissociative experiences or physical activity levels (p>0.05).Conclusion: While no significant effects were observed on dissociative symptoms or physical activity levels, the findings may suggest that aerobic exercise has the potential to be integrated as a supportive component of multidisciplinary treatment approaches, particularly in future studies involving larger and more heterogeneous samples.