PURPOSE: Participating in physical activity may benefit health-related outcomes for adults with cerebral palsy (CP). The aim of this review is to provide a synthesis of the evidence from both qualitative and quantitative studies on the impact of physical activity and exercise interventions in adults with CP. METHODS: Literature searches were conducted from inception to November 2023 in nine electronic databases. A meta-analysis was carried out to evaluate the efficacy of the interventions on walking speed related outcomes and muscle strength. RESULTS: Twenty-two studies met the inclusion criteria. The interventions of the nine studies included in the meta-analysis did not improve walking speed over a distance of 10m (SMD -0.03, 95% CI -0.34 to 0.40, p = 0.88, I2 0%) or endurance (distance covered in 2 or 6 min) (SMD 0.25, 95% CI -0.10 to 0.59, p = 0.16, I2 0%), but there was an improvement in lower limb muscle strength in favour of the experimental groups (SMD 0.59, 95% CI 0.19 to 0.99, p = 0.004, I2 20%). Only a few studies reported on psychosocial outcomes, quality of life, or intervention sustainability. DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS: Further research is needed to explore the impact on psychosocial outcomes and quality of life in adults with CP and the sustainability of physical activity participation.

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