Physical Activity In Heart Failure Patients Research Articles

International Physical Activity Questionnaire Short Form and accelerometer-assessed physical activity: concurrent validity using six cut-points in HF patients.

Physical activity (PA) is an important target for improving clinical outcomes in heart failure (HF) patients. Nonetheless, assessing the daily PA profile in this population is a challenging task, traditionally performed using self-report questionnaires such as the International PA Questionnaire Short Form (IPAQ-SF). This study aimed to evaluate the concurrent validity of the IPAQ-SF and accelerometer-assessed PA using six published cut-points in patients with HF and reduced or mildly reduced ejection fraction. The concordance between the IPAQ-SF and a hip-worn accelerometer regarding daily time spent performing moderate to vigorous PA in bouts of at least 10min was assessed in 53 participants for seven consecutive days using six different cut-points (Barnett, Dibben, Mark, Sanders, Troiano, and Vaha-Ypya). Spearman's correlation and Bland-Altman plots were used to evaluate concurrent validity between methods. Regressions were used to study the association between patient variables, wear protocol (waking hour or 24h), and absolute bias. The kappa index was used to evaluate the concordance between IPAQ-SF and accelerometry for classifying patients as active or non-active. All analyses were re-run using non-bouted metrics to investigate the effect of bouted versus non-bouted analysis. The IPAQ-SF and accelerometry showed low to negligible correlation (ρ=0.12 to 0.37), depending on the cut-point used. The regression analysis showed that the absolute bias was higher in participants following the waking-hour protocol at all cut-points except Dibben's (P≤0.007). The concordance between the two methods to classify patients as active and non-active was low when using Mark (κ=0.23) and Barnett (κ=0.34) cut-points and poor for the remaining cut-points (κ=0.03 to 0.18). The results of the sensitivity analysis showed negligible to low correlation using non-bouted metrics (ρ=0.27 to 0.33). Moderate to vigorous PA measures using IPAQ-SF and accelerometers are not equivalent, and we do not encourage researchers to use IPAQ-SF alone when assessing PA in HF patients. Moreover, applying personalized collection and processing criteria is important when assessing PA in HF patients. We recommend following the 24h protocol and selecting cut-points calibrated in patients with cardiovascular diseases. Finally, it is necessary to develop a new tailored questionnaire that considers walking intensity and is adjusted to the current World Health Organisation recommendations, which use non-bouted metrics.

PS-C13-13: BLOOD PRESSURE REACTIVITY AGAINST PHYSICAL ACTIVITY “ACTISENSITIVITY” EVALUATED BY MULTISENSOR-ABPM CHANGES BEFORE AND AFTER TREATMENT OF HEART FAILURE

Introduction: The pathological significance of blood pressure (BP) variability in patients with heart failure (HF) has not been fully elucidated. We propose the term Actisensitivity to describe such BP reactivity in response to physical activity; this new aspect of BP variability can be evaluated using our recently developed device, a multisensor-ambulatory BP monitoring (ABPM) device (TM-2441, A&D Co., Tokyo) equipped with an actigraph that can detect physical movements. Methods: In the present study, actisensitivity is defined as the slope of the regression line that is calculated from ambulatory systolic BP (SBP) with the log-transformed value corresponding 5-min average of physical activity just before each BP measurement. We prospectively assessed the changes in actisensitivity and ambulatory BP (ABP) parameters between patients with and without improved cardiac function during the treatment of HF. We assessed 20 patients with diagnosed HF (mean ± SD age, 63.3 ± 14.1 years; male, 65%; ischemic heart disease, 15%; atrial fibrillation, 25%) just after initial or adjusted treatments, and reassessed the multisensor-ABPM data at follow-up from 6–12 months after tailored treatment. Second, we divided these patients into an improved (n = 11 patients) and a not-improved (n = 9) cardiac-function group; an increase in echocardiographic left ventricular ejection fraction of ≧ 10%. We then compared the changes in actisensitivity and ABP parameters between the two groups. Results: Parameters of ABP variability, i.e., SD, coefficient of variation, and average real variability of SBP, did not change between baseline and follow-up in either group. However, the actisensitivity value tended to increase from baseline to follow-up in the improved group (1.0 ± 3.5 vs. 4.5 ± 3.5, p = 0.065), but not in the not-improved group. The degree of changes in actisensitivity from baseline to follow-up tended to be higher in the improved group than the not-improved group (3.5 ± 5.6 vs. -1.2 ± 4.8, p = 0.059) (Figure). Moreover, in the overall patient group, the change of actisensitivity from baseline to follow-up was significantly related to the changes of LVEF (r = 0.553, p = 0.011). Conclusion: To our knowledge, this is the first study to prospectively observe the changes of novel BP reactivity against physical activity in HF patients using the new multisensor-ABPM device. Our findings should help to elucidate the relationships between BP variability/hemodynamics during physical activity and cardiac function in patients with HF.

Assessment of Physical Activity Using Waist-Worn Accelerometers in Hospitalized Heart Failure Patients and Its Relationship with Kansas City Cardiomyopathy Questionnaire.

The health benefits of physical activity have been widely recognized, yet there is limited information on associations between accelerometer-related parameters and established patient-reported health status. This study investigated the association between the waist-worn accelerometer measurements, cardiopulmonary exercise testing (CPX), and results of the Kansas City Cardiomyopathy Questionnaire (KCCQ) in heart failure (HF) patients hospitalized for acute decompensation. A total of 31 patients were enrolled and wore a validated three-axis accelerometer for 2 weeks and completed the short version of the KCCQ after removing the device. Daily step counts, exercise time (metabolic equivalents × hours), and %sedentary time (sedentary time/device-equipped time) were measured. Among the measured parameters, the best correlation was observed between %sedentary time and the KCCQ overall and clinical summary scores (r = −0.65 and −0.65, each p < 0.001). All of the individual domains of the KCCQ (physical limitation, symptom frequency, and quality of life), with the exception of the social limitation domain, showed moderate correlations with %sedentary time. Finally, oxygen consumption assessed by CPX demonstrated only weak associations with the accelerometer-measured parameters. An accelerometer could complement the KCCQ results in accurately assessing the physical activity in HF patients immediately after hospitalization, albeit its correlation with CPX was at most moderate.

Heart failure and promotion of physical activity before and after cardiac rehabilitation (HF‐aPProACH): a study protocol

AimsLifestyle changes, such as increasing physical activity (PA), are a cornerstone of treatment of patients with chronic heart failure (HF). However, improving PA in HF patients is challenging, and low participation rates for cardiac rehabilitation (CR) as well as relapse to low PA levels after CR are major issues. We designed a randomized controlled trial to investigate if PA monitoring with motivational feedback before and after centre‐based CR in HF patients with reduced ejection fraction (HFrEF) will lead to a clinically meaningful increase in physical fitness.Methods and resultsA randomized controlled trial will be conducted in a sample of 180 HFrEF patients (New York Heart Association Class II/III) who are referred to 12‐week standard CR. Patients will be randomized (2:1) to (1) standard of care (SoC) plus wearing a PA monitoring device (Fitbit Charge 3) with personalized step goals, feedback and motivation or (2) SoC only. The intervention lasts ±7 months: 4–5 weeks before CR, 12 weeks during CR and 12 weeks after CR. Measurements will take place at three time points. The primary endpoint is the change in the distance in 6‐min walking test (6MWT) over the entire study period. Other endpoints include step count, grip strength, quality of life and all‐cause mortality or hospitalization.ConclusionsHF‐aPProACH will provide novel information on the effectiveness of remote PA stimulation and feedback before, during and after standard CR using a commercially available device to improve physical fitness in HFrEF patients.

Physical activity in patients with heart failure: barriers and motivations with special focus on sex differences.

BackgroundAdherence to recommendations for physical activity is low in both male and female patients with heart failure (HF). Men are more physically active than women. In order to successfully promote physical activity, it is therefore essential to explore how much and why HF patients are physically active and if this is related to sex. The aim of this study was therefore to evaluate physical activity in HF patients, to describe the factors related to physical activity, and to examine potential barriers and motivations to physical activity with special focus on sex differences.MethodsThe study had a cross-sectional survey design. HF patients living at home received a questionnaire during May–July 2014, with questions on physical activity (from the Short Form-International Physical Activity Questionnaire), and potential barriers and motivations to physical activity.ResultsA total of 154 HF patients, 27% women, with a mean age of 70±10 were included. In total, 23% of the patients reported a high level of physical activity, 46% a moderate level, and 34% a low level. Higher education, self-efficacy, and motivation were significantly associated with a higher amount of physical activity. Symptoms or severity of the disease were not related to physical activity. All the potential barriers to exercise were reported to be of importance. Psychological motivations were most frequently rated as being the most important motivation (41%) to be physically active. Physical motivations (33%) and social motivations were rated as the least important ones (22%). Women had significantly higher total motivation to be physically active. These differences were found in social, physical, and psychological motivations.DiscussionOne-third of the HF patients had a low level of physical activity in their daily life. Severity of the disease or symptoms were not related, whereas level of education, exercise self-efficacy, and motivation were important factors to take into account when advising a HF patient about physical activity. Women reported higher motivation to be physically active than men, but there was no difference in the reported level of physical activity.

Daily Physical Activity in Stable Heart Failure Patients

Physical activity is the only nonpharmacological therapy that is proven to be effective in heart failure (HF) patients in reducing morbidity. To date, little is known about the levels of daily physical activity in HF patients and about related factors. The objectives of this study were to (a) describe performance-based daily physical activity in HF patients, (b) compare it with physical activity guidelines, and (c) identify related factors of daily physical activity. The daily physical activity of 68 HF patients was measured using an accelerometer (SenseWear) for 48 hours. Psychological characteristics (self-efficacy, motivation, and depression) were measured using questionnaires. To have an indication how to interpret daily physical activity levels of the study sample, time spent on moderate- to vigorous-intensity physical activities was compared with the 30-minute activity guideline. Steps per day was compared with the criteria for healthy adults, in the absence of HF-specific criteria. Linear regression analyses were used to identify related factors of daily physical activity. Forty-four percent were active for less than 30 min/d, whereas 56% were active for more than 30 min/d. Fifty percent took fewer than 5000 steps per day, 35% took 5000 to 10 000 steps per day, and 15% took more than 10 000 steps per day. Linear regression models showed that New York Heart Association classification and self-efficacy were the most important factors explaining variance in daily physical activity. The variance in daily physical activity in HF patients is considerable. Approximately half of the patients had a sedentary lifestyle. Higher New York Heart Association classification and lower self-efficacy are associated with less daily physical activity. These findings contribute to the understanding of daily physical activity behavior of HF patients and can help healthcare providers to promote daily physical activity in sedentary HF patients.