Physical Activity across Frailty Phenotypes in Females with Parkinson's Disease

Abstract

Females with Parkinson's disease (PD) are vulnerable to frailty. PD eventually leads to decreased physical activity, an indicator of frailty. We speculate PD results in frailty through reduced physical activity. Objective. Determine the contribution of physical activity on frailty in PD (n = 15, 65 ± 9 years) and non-PD (n = 15, 73 ± 14 years) females. Methods. Frailty phenotype (nonfrail/prefrail/frail) was categorized and 8 hours of physical activity was measured using accelerometer, global positioning system, and self-report. Two-way ANCOVA (age as covariate) was used to compare physical activity between disease and frailty phenotypes. Spearman correlation assessed relationships, and linear regression determined associations with frailty. Results. Nonfrail recorded more physical activity (intensity, counts, self-report) compared with frail. Self-reported physical activity was greater in PD than non-PD. In non-PD, step counts, light physical activity time, sedentary time, and self-reported physical activity were related to frailty (R = 0.91). In PD, only carbidopa-levodopa dose was related to frailty (r = 0.61). Conclusion. Physical activity influences frailty in females without PD. In PD females, disease management may be a better indicator of frailty than physical activity. Further investigation into how PD associated factors contribute to frailty is warranted.

Figure 1

Relationship between frailty severity, measured by Cardiovascular Health Study frailty index, and daily carbidopa-levodopa dose (mg). Increased step count is positively correlated with greater frailty severity (r = 0.61) in females with PD. Females with PD are represented by the open circles and dashed regression line.

Figure 2

Relationship between frailty severity and: (a) daily step count. Total daily step count was negatively correlated with frailty severity (r = −0.79) in females without PD; (b) accumulated daily sedentary time. Sedentary time was positively correlated with frailty severity (r = 0.84) in females without PD; (c) accumulated light physical activity time. Light activity time was negatively correlated with frailty severity (r = −0.82) in females without PD; (d) self-reported leisure activity. Self-reported activity was negatively correlated with greater frailty severity (r = −0.82) in females without PD. Females with PD are represented by the open circle and dashed regression line; females without PD are represented by the open triangle and dotted regression line.