Citation

Pulakka A, Cheung Y, Ashorn U, Penpraze V, Maleta K, Phuka J, Ashorn P. Acta Paediatr. 2013; 102(12): 1192-1198.

Affiliation

Department of International Health, University of Tampere School of Medicine, Tampere, Finland.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2013, John Wiley and Sons)

DOI

10.1111/apa.12412

PMID

24102811

Abstract

AIM: To test the feasibility and validity of the ActiGraph GT3X accelerometer in measuring physical activity of rural Malawian toddlers. METHODS: Fifty-six children aged 16.0 to 18.5 months wore the accelerometer on their right hip for seven days. We analysed days with a minimum of 600 minutes of wear time, excluding night time and periods when the unit registered zero for 20 consecutive minutes. The first and last days were excluded as they were incomplete. Accelerometer counts were compared to coded free play video recordings to define median accelerometer counts for sedentary, light, moderate and vigorous activity. Count cut points were defined for moderate to vigorous physical activity, with predictive validity assessed using a second set of video recordings. RESULTS: Median wear time was 797 minutes per day, with 79% of participants completing at least four eligible days. Accelerometer counts were significantly higher for observed moderate to vigorous physical activity, than lighter activity, with cut points of 208 counts/15 seconds for vector magnitude and 35 counts/15 seconds for vertical axis, showing sensitivity of 94.2% and 84.1% and specificity of 90.9% and 84.6%, respectively. CONCLUSION: The accelerometer proved a feasible and valid method of assessing physical activity among Malawian toddlers. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.

Language: en