Physical activity counseling in overweight and obese primary care patients: Outcomes of the VA-STRIDE randomized controlled trial

Behavioral Counseling Interventions to Promote a Healthy Diet and Physical Activity for Cardiovascular Disease Prevention in Adults Without Known Cardiovascular Disease Risk Factors: Updated Evidence Report and Systematic Review for the US Preventive Services Task Force

IMPORTANCE

Unhealthful dietary patterns, low levels of physical activity, and high sedentary time increase the risk of cardiovascular disease.

OBJECTIVE

To synthesize the evidence on benefits and harms of behavioral counseling interventions to promote a healthy diet and physical activity in adults without known cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk factors to inform a US Preventive Services Task Force recommendation.

DATA SOURCES

MEDLINE, PsycINFO, and the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials through February 2021, with ongoing surveillance through February 2022.

STUDY SELECTION

Randomized clinical trials (RCTs) of behavioral counseling interventions targeting improved diet, increased physical activity, or decreased sedentary time among adults without known elevated blood pressure, elevated lipid levels, or impaired fasting glucose.

DATA EXTRACTION AND SYNTHESIS

Independent data abstraction and study quality rating and random effects meta-analysis.

MAIN OUTCOMES AND MEASURES

CVD events, CVD risk factors, diet and physical activity measures, and harms.

RESULTS

One-hundred thirteen RCTs were included (N = 129 993). Three RCTs reported CVD-related outcomes: 1 study (n = 47 179) found no significant differences between groups on any CVD outcome at up to 13.4 years of follow-up; a combined analysis of the other 2 RCTs (n = 1203) found a statistically significant association of the intervention with nonfatal CVD events (hazard ratio, 0.27 [95% CI, 0.08 to 0.88]) and fatal CVD events (hazard ratio, 0.31 [95% CI, 0.11 to 0.93]) at 4 years. Diet and physical activity behavioral counseling interventions were associated with small, statistically significant reductions in continuous measures of blood pressure (systolic mean difference, -0.8 [95% CI, -1.3 to -0.3]; 23 RCTs [n = 57 079]; diastolic mean difference, -0.4 [95% CI, -0.8 to -0.0]; 24 RCTs [n = 57 148]), low-density lipoprotein cholesterol level (mean difference, 2.2 mg/dL [95% CI, -3.8 to -0.6]; 15 RCTs [n = 6350]), adiposity-related outcomes (body mass index mean difference, -0.3 [95% CI, -0.5 to -0.1]; 27 RCTs [n = 59 239]), dietary outcomes, and physical activity at 6 months to 1.5 years of follow-up vs control conditions. There was no evidence of greater harm among intervention vs control groups.

CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE

Healthy diet and physical activity behavioral counseling interventions for persons without a known risk of CVD were associated with small but statistically significant benefits across a variety of important intermediate health outcomes and small to moderate effects on dietary and physical activity behaviors. There was limited evidence regarding the long-term health outcomes or harmful effects of these interventions.

Stepped-down intervention programs to promote self-managed physical activity in military service veterans: A systematic review of randomised controlled trials

OBJECTIVES

A stepped-down program is one where clients transition from the care of a health professional to self-managed care. This study reviewed the effectiveness of stepped-down interventions to promote self-managed physical activity for health in military service veterans.

DESIGN

Systematic review.

METHODS

Literature searches of 11 electronic databases were performed (up to 28th April 2020) to identify randomised controlled trials that assessed self-managed physical activity interventions in military service veterans. Data were extracted on study characteristics, intervention programs (with strategies mapped against a taxonomy of behaviour change techniques), and physical activity outcomes; secondary outcomes were physical fitness/function, psychosocial health, and cost effectiveness. Study quality was assessed using a 15-item checklist adapted from the TESTEX scale.

RESULTS

Searches identified 26 studies (all from the United States; N = 45 to 531 participants) representing 17 intervention programs. Studies were of good quality (M = 10.7; SD = 2.3). More than half (54%) reported positive between-group intervention effects for physical activity outcomes (mean increase of 80 min/week in self-reported physical activity at 10-12 months). Physical fitness/function outcomes improved in 38% of studies, but no studies found significant intervention effects for psychosocial health or cost effectiveness outcomes. Behaviour change techniques most frequently used to elicit physical activity changes were education, goal setting, goal review and self-monitoring.

CONCLUSIONS

Stepped-down programs that include specific behaviour change techniques have the potential to promote self-management of physical activity in military service veterans. Multi-national randomised controlled trials that use objective physical activity measures are needed to further build the evidence base.

Prescribing Physical Activity in Parks and Nature: Health Care Provider Insights on Park Prescription Programs

BACKGROUND

Health care providers (HCPs) promoting physical activity (PA) through programs such as Park Prescriptions (ParkRx) are gaining momentum. However, it is difficult to realize provider PA practices and program interest, and differences in program success exist by provider type (eg, primary vs secondary). This study explored HCPs' (1) PA counseling practices, (2) knowledge/interest in ParkRx, (3) barriers and resources needed to implement PA counseling and ParkRx programs, and (4) differences in primary versus secondary HCPs.

METHODS

An e-survey administered in Spring/Summer 2018 to HCPs in 3 states examined study objectives.

RESULTS

Respondents (n = 278) were mostly primary (58.3%) HCPs. The majority asked about patient PA habits and offered PA counseling (mean = 5.0, SD = 1.5; mean = 4.8, SD = 1.5), but few provided written prescriptions (mean = 2.5, SD = 1.6). Providers were satisfied with their PA counseling knowledge (mean = 3.8, SD = 1.0) but not with prescribing practices (mean = 3.2, SD = 1.1). Secondary HCPs placed higher importance (P = .012) and provided significantly more written PA prescriptions (P = .005). Time was a common barrier to prescribing PA (mean = 3.4, SD = 1.2), though more so for primary HCPs (P = .000). Although few HCPs knew about ParkRx programs, 81.6% expressed interest. Access to park information and community partnerships was an important resource for program implementation.

CONCLUSIONS

HCPs underutilize PA prescriptions. Despite little awareness, HCPs were interested in ParkRx programs.

Physical activity promotion in Manitoba: Strengths, needs, and moving forward

Objectives:

To present findings of a workshop with physical activity professionals in Manitoba, Canada, to facilitate the enhancement of physical activity promotion efforts by exploring (1) effective physical activity strategies, (2) methods to strengthen physical activity strategies, (3) challenges in implementing physical activity strategies in Manitoba, and (4) strategies to support collaboration.

Methods:

The Manitoba Research Chair in Primary Prevention hosted a workshop for 54 stakeholders in Manitoba. Qualitative and quantitative data obtained from the workshop were analyzed using qualitative content analysis and univariate descriptive analysis. Purposive sampling was used to recruit participants with diverse experiences in physical activity promotion.

Results:

Strategies were identified and presented according to the socioecological model. Community assessment and community engagement, regional partnerships, capacity building, and mitigation of barriers characterized the discussion. In addition, discussions emphasized the need for the consistent and comprehensive application of a provincial physical activity action plan. The workshop ended with a discussion of the importance of collaboration to improve physical activity programs and initiatives.

Conclusion:

Several common needs were identified that reflect topics from the broader literature. Collaborations and insights from workshop participants provide direction to target increased physical activity support and programming across disciplines, sectors, and regions.

A pedometer-based walking intervention with and without email counseling in general practice: a pilot randomized controlled trial

BACKGROUND

General practitioners play a fundamental role in combatting the current epidemic of physical inactivity, and pedometer-based walking interventions are able to increase physical activity levels of their patients. Supplementing these interventions with email counseling driven by feedback from the pedometer has the potential to further improve their effectiveness but it has to be yet confirmed in clinical trials. Therefore, the aim of our pilot randomized controlled trial is to evaluate the feasibility and potential efficacy of future trials designed to assess the additional benefit of email counseling added to a pedometer-based intervention in a primary care setting.

METHODS

Physically inactive patients were opportunistically recruited from four general practices and randomized to a 12-week pedometer-based intervention with or without email counseling. To explore the feasibility of future trials, we assessed the speed and efficiency of recruitment, adherence to wearing the pedometer, and engagement with email counseling. To evaluate the potential efficacy, daily step-count was the primary outcome and blood pressure, waist and hip circumference, and body mass were the secondary outcomes. Additionally, we conducted a qualitative analysis of structured interviews with the participating general practitioners.

RESULTS

The opportunistic recruitment has been shown to be feasible and acceptable, but relatively slow and inefficient; moreover, general practitioners selectively recruited overweight and obese patients. Patients manifested high adherence, wearing the pedometer on 83% (± 20) of days. All patients from the counseling group actively participated in email communication and responded to 46% (± 22) of the emails they received. Both groups significantly increased their daily step-count (pedometer-plus-email, + 2119, p = 0.002; pedometer-alone, + 1336, p = 0.03), but the difference between groups was not significant (p = 0.18). When analyzing both groups combined, there was a significant decrease in body mass (- 0.68 kg, p = 0.04), waist circumference (- 1.73 cm, p = 0.03), and systolic blood pressure (- 3.48 mmHg, p = 0.045).

CONCLUSIONS

This study demonstrates that adding email counseling to a pedometer-based intervention in a primary care setting is feasible and might have the potential to increase the efficacy of such an intervention in increasing physical activity levels.

TRIAL REGISTRATION

The trial was retrospectively registered at ClinicalTrials.gov (ID: NCT03135561 , date: April 26, 2017).

Physical activity in patients with COPD: the impact of comorbidities

INTRODUCTION

Comorbidities are common in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and it plays an important role on physical activity (PA) in this population. Since low PA levels have been described as a key factor to predict morbi-mortality in COPD, it seems crucial to review the current literature available on this topic. Areas covered: This review covers the most common comorbidities found in COPD, their prevalence and prognostic implications. We explore the differences in PA between COPD patients with and without comorbidities, as well as the impact of the number or type of comorbidities on activity levels of this population. The effect of different comorbidities on activities of daily living in patients with COPD is also reviewed. Finally, we discuss options for the treatment of inactivity in COPD patients considering their comorbidities and limitations. Expert commentary: Comorbidities are highly prevalent in patients with COPD and further deteriorate PA levels in this population. Despite the wide range of interventions available in COPD, the evidence in the field seems to point at PA coaching with feedback on individual goals and longer lasting PR programmes with more than 12 weeks of duration when attempting to raise the activity levels of this population.

Physical activity maintenance among Spanish-speaking Latinas in a randomized controlled trial of an Internet-based intervention

Spanish-speaking Latinas have some of the lowest rates of meeting physical activity guidelines in the U.S. and are at high risk for many related chronic diseases. The purpose of the current study was to examine the maintenance of a culturally and individually-tailored Internet-based physical activity intervention for Spanish-speaking Latinas. Inactive Latinas (N  =  205) were randomly assigned to a 6-month Tailored Physical Activity Internet Intervention or a Wellness Contact Control Internet Group, with a 6-month follow-up. Maintenance was measured by assessing group differences in minutes per week of self-reported and accelerometer measured moderate to vigorous physical activity (MVPA) at 12 months after baseline and changes in MVPA between the end of the active intervention (month 6) and the end of the study (month 12). Potential moderators of the intervention were also examined. Data were collected between 2011 and 2014, and were analyzed in 2015 at the University of California, San Diego. The Intervention Group engaged in significantly more minutes of MVPA per week than the Control Group at the end of the maintenance period for both self-reported (mean diff. = 30.68, SE = 11.27, p = .007) and accelerometer measured (mean diff. = 11.47, SE = 3.19, p = .01) MVPA. There were no significant between- or within-group changes in MVPA from month 6 to 12. Greater intervention effects were seen for those with lower BMI (BMI × intervention = -6.67, SE = 2.88, p = .02) and lower perceived places to walk to in their neighborhood (access × intervention = -43.25, SE = 19.07, p = .02), with a trend for less family support (social support × intervention = -3.49, SE = 2.05, p = .08). Acculturation, health literacy, and physical activity related psychosocial variables were not significant moderators of the intervention effect during the maintenance period. Findings from the current study support the efficacy of an Internet-delivered individually tailored intervention for maintenance of MVPA gains over time.