People with lower-limb loss
benefited from a wellness walking program designed for them, but staying
committed to the activity remained a challenge, a study has found.
Committed
participants—those attending three sessions within three years—were
compared to one-time-only participants using Fisher’s exact and
independent T–tests. Participants provided medical
history and self-reported balance confidence and prosthetic functional
measures. Physiotherapy professionals/paraprofessionals assessed balance
and gait. Two former Paralympians led the wellness walking sessions.
First and third sessions for committed participants were compared with T-tests.
A bootstrapped multivariable logistic regression model was developed
using significant univariate predictors. The 305 volunteers averaged
55.7 years old (± 15.2 years), included 68.4 percent men, and were 78.4
percent of the white race. Of the cohort, 51.8 percent had dysvascular
amputations, 40.5 percent with ⩾1 prosthetic
knee; and 49.1 percent were independent community walkers. Committed
participants were initially similar to one-time-only participants except
for fewer years since amputation, better balance ability, and greater
likelihood of dieting. The final model—balance ability (odds
ratio = 2.4), dieting (odds ratio = 3.3), and years since amputation
(odds ratio = 0.94)—identified 88 percent of committed participants.
Balance confidence and functional improvements after three sessions were
not significant.
The
study found that committed participants were more likely to diet, have
better balance ability, and have more recent amputations than
one-time-only participants.
The study was published August 16 in Prosthetics and Orthotics International.
