Physical strain of walking in people with neuromuscular diseases is high and relates to step activity in daily life.
Sander Oorschot, Eric Voorn, Annerieke Van Groenestijn and 2 others
PMID 38850055WHAT IT FOUND
For people with neuromuscular diseases, comfortable walking uses about 73% of their peak capacity, far higher than the 34–49% seen in healthy adults.
This high strain was linked to fewer daily steps, but not to less time spent in moderate-to-vigorous activity.
Key findings
01Physical strain of walking averaged 73% of peak oxygen uptake, compared with 34–49% in healthy adults of similar age.
02Higher physical strain was significantly associated with lower daily step counts, even after correcting for age, sex, BMI, muscle strength, and walking speed.
03Physical strain was not significantly associated with daily time spent in moderate-to-vigorous physical activity.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for PTsWhat it means for OTs
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What it does not show
The study only included ambulatory participants motivated to increase aerobic capacity, so results may not apply to non-ambulatory patients or those less motivated. Peak oxygen uptake was measured during cycling, not walking. Since walking typically elicits a higher peak oxygen uptake than cycling, the calculated physical strain may be overestimated. The accelerometer used to count steps has lower validity at walking speeds below 0.9 m/s, which some participants exhibited, potentially affecting the accuracy of step count data. The cross-sectional design cannot prove that high physical strain causes reduced activity; it only shows an association.
Declared interests
The authors declared no conflicts of interest. The work was funded by the Prinses Beatrix Spierfonds.
The easy way to misread this
Do not conclude that patients with high physical strain are simply less active overall. While they took fewer steps, they spent a similar amount of time in moderate-to-vigorous activity as those with lower strain, suggesting they may be performing fewer but more intense tasks or breaking up sedentary time with frequent transitions.