Physical activity monitoring in patients with peripheral arterial occlusive disease.

PURPOSE: Physical activity is an important variable to measure in patients with peripheral arterial occlusive disease (PAOD) because of this relationship to cardiovascular disease morbidity and mortality. The purposes of this study were to (1) determine the reliability of measures of daily physical activity in PAOD participants using an accelerometer and a pedometer; and (2) assess the validity of both instruments by comparing them against validated physical activity questionnaires. METHODS: Forty-three patients with PAOD with a resting ankle/brachial index of 0.63 +/- 0.19 were monitored for 2 consecutive weekdays with an accelerometer and pedometer worn on each hip. The 48-hour monitoring period was repeated approximately 1 week later. RESULTS: The daily physical activity values obtained from the accelerometer were similar between the two testing periods, 352 +/- 248 kcal/day vs. 337 +/- 199 kcal/day; P = 0.61, with a reliability coefficient of r = 0.84. The steps obtained from the pedometer during each 2-day period also were similar, 4615 +/- 2839 steps/day vs. 4498 +/- 2768 steps /day; P = 0.75, with a reliability coefficient of r = 0.86. The physical activity values from the accelerometer moderately correlated with the Minnesota Leisure Time Physical Activity Questionnaire, r = 0.33; P < 0.01, and the NASA/Johnson Space Center Physical Activity Scale, r = 0.44; P < 0.001. Similarly, the relationship between the steps obtained from the pedometer and physical Activity and the Minnesota Leisure Time Physical Activity and NASA/Johnson Space Center Physical Activity Scale questionnaires were significant, r = 0.46 and r = 0.51; P < 0.001, respectively. CONCLUSION: These findings indicate that an accelerometer and pedometer are two instruments that reliably estimate the physical activity levels of patients with PAOD over 2 consecutive days. Furthermore, the activity questionnaires, suggesting that activity monitoring measures a different component of activities in patients with PAOD with intermittent claudication.

Benefits of aerobic exercise for the paraplegic: a brief review.

The importance of exercise for the general population is emphasized widely; therefore, it must be even more important for paralegics who are already threatened with poor health due to the sedentary nature of their lifestyle. The effects of functional degeneration are vast and greatly reduce the overall health of paraplegics, particularly within the musculoskeletal and cardiovascular systems, thereby increasing their risk for cardiovascular disease. Recent investigations suggest that this process may be reversible through exercise training and that paraplegics respond to exercise training in essentially the same manner as the non-handicapped individual. In addition, exercise training has been reported to decrease the resorptive process of the skeleton by decreasing bone and collagen catabolism and possibly aiding in new bone formation. This review attempts to summarize the available literature on the effects of exercise on the paraplegic and will hopefully provide some direction not only for further research but also recommendations for practitioners working in the field.