An Investigation on the Physical Activity Levels in Asthmatic Children

Abstract

Objective: The purpose of this study was to investigate the physical activity levels in asthmatic children and establish whether there are any associations between physical activity levels and asthma control. Design: A service evaluation using a quantitative design. Participants: Twenty-one male and sixteen female asthmatic children aged 5 - 14 years were recruited through convenience sampling from the Royal Hospital for Sick Children. Outcome measures: Physical activity was measured by the Physical Activity Questionnaire for Children (PAQ-C) and asthma control was measured using the Asthma Control Test (ACT). Results: From the total PAQ-C summary scores, ranging from 1 (low activity) to 5 (high activity), of the thirty-seven children, the mean physical activity score was calculated to be 2.49. Pearson correlation coefficients were calculated to determine any associations between physical activity and asthma control and Spearman correlation coefficients were calculated to determine any associations between body weight, physical activity and asthma control. Statistical analysis showed a very weak positive association between PAQ-C and ACT (r = .118, p=.486), a weak negative association between BMI and PAQ-C (r=-.227, p=.176) and a very weak positive association between BMI and ACT (r=.146, p=.388), none of which were found to have any statistical significance. Conclusion: The results of this study show that physical activity levels in asthmatic children are low and there is no significant association between physical activity and asthma control. Further research is required to establish associations to low physical activity levels in asthmatic children.