To main content

Physical Activity Behavior and Its Association With Global Cognitive Function Three Months After Stroke: The Nor-COAST Study

Abstract

Objective - The purposes of this study were to determine the association between physical activity (PA) behavior and global cognitive function 3 months after stroke and to explore the role of physical capacity as a mediating factor. Methods - Participants with stroke were successively recruited at 5 different hospitals in Norway. PA was measured using accelerometers, with a follow-up period of 7 consecutive days, and global cognitive function was assessed using the Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA). The general pattern of PA and the percentage of participants adhering to World Health Organization PA recommendations (at least 150 minutes of moderate-intensity aerobic PA per week) were investigated using descriptive statistics. Multiple regression and mediator analyses were used to examine the relationship between PA behavior and MoCA scores; physical capacity, measured with the Short Physical Performance Battery, served as the mediating variable. Results - A total of 193 women (42.6%) and 260 men (57.4%) with a median age of 73.7 years (25th and 75th percentiles = 65.8 and 80.4, respectively) and a median MoCA score of 25 points (25th and 75th percentiles = 22 and 27, respectively) were included. Mean total time spent walking at moderate intensity was 251.7 (SD = 164.6) min/wk (mean bout length = 20.9 [SD = 7.3] seconds), which indicated 69.3% adherence to World Health Organization guidelines. With each point decrease in the MoCA score, there was an expected 8.6% increase in the odds of nonadherence to PA recommendations. Physical capacity was identified as an important mediating factor, explaining the strength of the association between cognition and PA behavior. Conclusions - In contrast to previous research, in the present study, most participants adhered to the updated global PA guidelines. However, people who had survived stroke and had reduced cognitive function were at higher risk of inactivity, an association mediated by physical capacity. Impact - A better understanding of the association between cognition and PA behavior after stroke might help for developing more targeted early-onset interventions.
Read the publication

Category

Academic article

Language

English

Author(s)

  • Geske Luzum
  • Mari Gunnes
  • Stian Lydersen
  • Ingvild Tina Saltvedt
  • Xiang chun Tan
  • Anne Pernille Mæhle Thingstad
  • Gyrd Thrane
  • Torunn Askim

Affiliation

  • SINTEF Digital / Health Research
  • UiT The Arctic University of Norway
  • St. Olavs Hospital, Trondheim University Hospital
  • Norwegian University of Science and Technology
  • Trondheim kommune

Year

2023

Published in

Physical Therapy

ISSN

0031-9023

Volume

103

Issue

12

View this publication at Norwegian Research Information Repository