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. 2023 Jul 19:25:e45599.
doi: 10.2196/45599.

Accelerometer-Measured Physical Activity Data Sets (Global Physical Activity Data Set Catalogue) That Include Markers of Cardiometabolic Health: Systematic Scoping Review

Jonah J C Thomas  1   2   3 , Amanda J Daley  1   2   3 , Dale W Esliger  1   2   3   4 , Victoria E Kettle  1   2   3 , April Coombe  5 , Emmanuel Stamatakis  6 , James P Sanders  1   2   3
Affiliations

Accelerometer-Measured Physical Activity Data Sets (Global Physical Activity Data Set Catalogue) That Include Markers of Cardiometabolic Health: Systematic Scoping Review

Jonah J C Thomas et al. J Med Internet Res. .

Abstract

Background: Cardiovascular disease accounts for 17.9 million deaths globally each year. Many research study data sets have been collected to answer questions regarding the relationship between cardiometabolic health and accelerometer-measured physical activity. This scoping review aimed to map the available data sets that have collected accelerometer-measured physical activity and cardiometabolic health markers. These data were then used to inform the development of a publicly available resource, the Global Physical Activity Data set (GPAD) catalogue.

Objective: This review aimed to systematically identify data sets that have measured physical activity using accelerometers and cardiometabolic health markers using either an observational or interventional study design.

Methods: Databases, trial registries, and gray literature (inception until February 2021; updated search from February 2021 to September 2022) were systematically searched to identify studies that analyzed data sets of physical activity and cardiometabolic health outcomes. To be eligible for inclusion, data sets must have measured physical activity using an accelerometric device in adults aged ≥18 years; a sample size >400 participants (unless recruited participants in a low- and middle-income country where a sample size threshold was reduced to 100); used an observational, longitudinal, or trial-based study design; and collected at least 1 cardiometabolic health marker (unless only body mass was measured). Two reviewers screened the search results to identify eligible studies, and from these, the unique names of each data set were recorded, and characteristics about each data set were extracted from several sources.

Results: A total of 17,391 study reports were identified, and after screening, 319 were eligible, with 122 unique data sets in these study reports meeting the review inclusion criteria. Data sets were found in 49 countries across 5 continents, with the most developed in Europe (n=53) and the least in Africa and Oceania (n=4 and n=3, respectively). The most common accelerometric brand and device wear location was Actigraph and the waist, respectively. Height and body mass were the most frequently measured cardiometabolic health markers in the data sets (119/122, 97.5% data sets), followed by blood pressure (82/122, 67.2% data sets). The number of participants in the included data sets ranged from 103,712 to 120. Once the review processes had been completed, the GPAD catalogue was developed to house all the identified data sets.

Conclusions: This review identified and mapped the contents of data sets from around the world that have collected potentially harmonizable accelerometer-measured physical activity and cardiometabolic health markers. The GPAD catalogue is a web-based open-source resource developed from the results of this review, which aims to facilitate the harmonization of data sets to produce evidence that will reduce the burden of disease from physical inactivity.

Keywords: big data; data harmonization; device measured; open science; sedentary behavior.

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Conflict of interest statement

Conflicts of Interest: None declared.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
PRISMA (Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses) diagram of the screening and extraction process. The black dotted line represents the separation between the first and second stage of screening. CPCI-S: Conference Proceedings Citation Index–Science; WHO ICTRP: World Health Organization International Clinical Trials Registry Platform.
Figure 2
Figure 2
A screenshot of the home page of the Global Physical Activity Data set (GPAD) cards’ web-based data visualization tool.
Figure 3
Figure 3
More detailed screenshots of the Global Physical Activity Data set (GPAD) catalogue tool. (A) The health markers screen that allows data sets shown to be filtered by the health markers they collect, (B) a visualization of a single data set within the tool, (C) a comparison of 2 data sets within the GPAD, and (D) the bottom of the home page showing grouped health markers and accelerometer information.
Figure 4
Figure 4
Choropleth world map showing countries where data sets have been collected and how many participants’ data have been collected in each country (log transformed).
Figure 5
Figure 5
Number of data sets that collected each health outcome split by the continent of data collection. DBP: diastolic blood pressure; HDL: high-density lipoprotein; LDL: low-density lipoprotein; SBP: systolic blood pressure; VLDL: very low-density lipoprotein.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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