Abstract
Coote S, O'Dwyer C. Comparative validity of accelerometer-based measures of physical
activity for people with multiple sclerosis.
Objective
To estimate the criterion validity of accelerometer-based devices as measures of steps
and energy expenditure in healthy controls and people with multiple sclerosis (MS)
with varying disability levels during everyday activities.
Design
Cross-sectional study.
Setting
University research room.
Participants
People with MS who used at most a stick to walk outdoors (MS-A; n=19), people with
MS who used bilateral support for gait (MS-B; n=11), and healthy controls (n=15).
Interventions
Participants completed 85 minutes of 9 scripted everyday activities.
Main Outcome Measures
Estimates of metabolic equivalent thresholds (METs) and kilocalories from a portable
metabolic system, and steps counted from video of the activities. Step and MET estimates
from an integrative accelerometer and from a uniaxial accelerometer, and kilocalorie
estimates from the integrative accelerometer.
Results
The uniaxial accelerometer had >30% error for steps for all groups. MET estimates
had an intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC) <0.2 for all groups. For the integrative
accelerometer, step estimates for controls had an ICC of .69 and <1% error. The step
estimates for MS-A and MS-B groups had >20% error. The MET estimates had an ICC of
.50 to .65 and 6% to 15% error. Kilocalorie estimates had 2.9% error for controls,
8.16% for MS-A, and 2.56% for MS-B groups. ICCs were all >.67, and mean differences
from criterion were <20kcal.
Conclusions
The agreement between steps and MET estimates from both devices and the criterion
was poor, particularly for people with MS. Only the step and MET estimates for the
control group for the integrative accelerometer were not significantly different from
the criterion. Kilocalorie estimates from the integrative accelerometer using the
proprietary algorithms of the device provide the most valid estimate of physical activity
during activities of daily living for people with a range of walking disabilities
resulting from MS.
Key Words
List of Abbreviations:
APAL (ActivPAL), EE (energy expenditure), GNDS (Guy's Neurological Disability Scale), ICC (intraclass correlation coefficient), MET (metabolic equivalent threshold), MS (multiple sclerosis), PA (physical activity), PwMS (people with multiple sclerosis), SWA (SenseWear Armband)To read this article in full you will need to make a payment
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Article info
Publication history
Published online: May 25, 2012
Footnotes
Supported by the Irish Research Council for Science Engineering and Technology.
No commercial party having a direct financial interest in the results of the research supporting this article has or will confer a benefit on the authors or on any organization with which the authors are associated.
In-press corrected proof published online on Jul 20, 2012, at www.archives-pmr.org.
Identification
Copyright
© 2012 American Congress of Rehabilitation Medicine. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
