ORIGINAL ARTICLES   

Gazzetta Medica Italiana-Archivio per le Scienze Mediche 2009 June;168(3):121-8

Copyright © 2009 EDIZIONI MINERVA MEDICA

language: English

Rating of perceived exertion in substance dependent adults with attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder: an issue of self presentation?

Mamen A. ¹, Skrede A. ^{1, 2}, Munkvold H. ², Martinsen E. ^{3, 4}

¹ Faculty of Teacher Education and Sport Sogn og Fjordane University College Sogndal, Norway 2 Department of Psychiatry Førde Regional Hospital, Førde, Norway 3 Department of Research and Education Aker University Hospital, Oslo Norway 4 Institute of Psychiatry, University of Oslo Oslo, Norway

Aim and methods. Thirty adults with substance dependence, of which 13 had attention deficit/ hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), were tested on the treadmill for lactate threshold and maximal oxygen uptake. Rating of perceived exertion (RPE) according to the15-point Borg scale was recorded.
Results. Subjects with ADHD differed significantly from the non-ADHD group with regard to the RPE score, which was lower, 10.9 vs. 13.0 (P=0.009), and threshold heart rate (HRLT), 151 vs 141beats.min-1 (P=0.022) and blood lactate concentration (BLC) at threshold, 2.8 vs 2.4 mmol.L-1 (P= 0.009) which were higher. The maximal oxygen uptake was 46 vs 44 mL.kg-1 .min-1 (P=0.409) for the ADHD and non-ADHD groups respectively, and thus adequate for performing heavy physical work. The self-presentation theory is used to discuss the differences seen in RPE scores: Self-constructive self-presentation aims at making persons believe that they are what they would like to be, and the goal of self-presentation is to please an audience.
Conclusion. Further research is needed to verify the findings of this study and elaborate the underlying processes of the difference in RPE scores in persons with ADHD.