Background: Decreased movement ability, one of the hallmarks of Parkinson disease (PD), may lead to inadequate physical activity (PA) and excessive time spent in sedentary behaviors-2 factors associated with an elevated risk for lifestyle-related diseases, poor management of PD, and premature death. To identify the extent to which people with PD are physically active, a comprehensive characterization of PA in this population is needed.
Objective: The study objective was to describe levels and patterns of PA and sedentary behaviors in elderly people with PD.
Design: This cross-sectional study involved a free-living setting and 53 men and 42 women (mean age=73.4 years) with mild to moderate idiopathic PD.
Methods: Time spent in PA and sedentary behaviors was assessed for 1 week with accelerometers.
Results: Mean daily step counts were 4,765; participants spent 589 minutes in sedentary behaviors, 141 minutes in low-intensity activities, 30 minutes in moderate-intensity lifestyle activities, and 16 minutes in moderate- to vigorous-intensity ambulatory activities. No differences were found between weekdays and weekend days. Patterns were characterized by a rise in total PA in the morning, peaking between 10 am and 3 pm, and a gradual decline toward the late evening. The proportion achieving 150 minutes of moderate- to vigorous-intensity PA per week was 27%, and 16% achieved 7,000 or more steps per day.
Limitations: Nonrandomized selection of participants may limit the generalizability of the results.
Conclusions: Physical activity levels were generally low, in terms of both total volume and intensity, with only minor variations over the course of a day or between days. These results emphasize the need to develop strategies to increase PA and reduce time spent in sedentary behaviors in elderly people with mild to moderate PD.
© 2015 American Physical Therapy Association.