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Abstract
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OBJECTIVE: Evaluate physical activity (PA) and sedentary behavior and their associations with symptom and quality of life outcomes in adults with persistent post-concussive symptoms (PPCS) following mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI).
DESIGN: Cross-sectional cohort study. SETTING: Outpatient brain injury clinic. PARTICIPANTS: Consecutive sample of adults (n=180) with a diagnosis of mTBI and PPCS. INTERVENTIONS: Not applicable. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: PA and sedentary behavior were assessed using the Godin Leisure-Time Exercise Questionnaire and Rapid Assessment Disuse Index, respectively. Participants were dichotomized according to whether they completed 150 minutes of moderate-to-vigorous PA per week, based on Canadian guidelines. Post-injury moderate-to-vigorous PA was also analyzed as a continuous variable.
RESULTS: Prior to injury, 85% of participants reported meeting PA guidelines, compared to 28% post-injury. Individuals meeting PA guidelines post-injury reported higher quality of life (η(2)(p)=0.130, p<0.001) and lower scores on measures of functional impact of headache (η(2)(p)=0.065, p=0.009), fatigue (η(2)(p)=0.080, p=0.004), depression (η(2)(p)=0.085, p=0.001) and anxiety (η(2)(p)=0.046, p=0.031), compared to those not meeting guidelines. Sedentary behavior post-injury was negatively correlated with quality of life (r(s)(127)= -0.252, p=0.004) and positively correlated with symptom burden (r(s)(167)=0.227, p=0.003), fatigue (r(s)(127)=0.288, p=0.001), depression (r(s)(174)=0.319, p<0.001) and anxiety (r(s)(127)=0.180, p=0.042).
CONCLUSIONS: PA was significantly decreased in individuals with PPCS compared to pre-injury levels. Meeting PA guidelines post-injury was associated with better clinical outcomes, suggesting that returning individuals to PA should be considered in the treatment of this patient population.
Language: en |