Habitual Physical Activity of People with or at Risk of Diabetes-Related Foot Complications

Abstract

Regular physical activity is an important component of diabetes management. However, there are limited data on the habitual physical activity of people with or at risk of diabetes-related foot complications. The aim of this study was to describe the habitual physical activity of people with or at risk of diabetes-related foot complications in regional Australia. Twenty-three participants with diabetes from regional Australia were recruited with twenty-two participants included in subsequent analyses: no history of ulcer (N = 11) and history of ulcer (N = 11). Each participant wore a triaxial accelerometer (GT3X+; ActiGraph LLC, Pensacola, FL, USA) on their non-dominant wrist for 14 days. There were no significant differences between groups according to both participant characteristics and physical activity outcomes. Median minutes per day of moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA) were 9.7 (IQR: 1.6-15.7) while participants recorded an average of 280 ± 78 min of low-intensity physical activity and 689 ± 114 min of sedentary behaviour. The sample accumulated on average 30 min of slow walking and 2 min of fast walking per day, respectively. Overall, participants spent very little time performing MVPA and were largely sedentary. It is important that strategies are put in place for people with or at risk of diabetes-related foot complications in order that they increase their physical activity significantly in accordance with established guidelines.

Keywords: diabetes; diabetic foot; exercise; peripheral neuropathy; physical activity.

Figure 1

Radar plot illustrating mean MX metrics for the sample (clockwise) for the most active 8 h of the day (M1/3DAY), 120 min (M120), 60 min (M60), 30 min (M30), 10 min (M15), 5 min (M5), and 2 min (M2). The dashed red lines represent indicative values for: slow walking (........) and fast walking (---) [24].