Stroke Survivors with the Same Levels of Exercise As Healthy Individuals Have Lower Levels of Physical Activity

Background: Physical activity and exercise are different constructs. However, professionals usually employ heterogeneous definitions for these distinct constructs, resulting in nonspecific and inaccurate assessments, which compromise clinical decision making.

Purpose: The aim of this study was to verify if the levels of physical activity behave similarly between individuals with stroke and healthy-control individuals with the same levels of exercise.

Methods: Seventy-five stroke survivors and 75 healthy-control individuals matched by levels of exercise, age, and sex were evaluated. The level of exercise was classified as inactive, insufficient, and moderate/vigorous according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention criteria. The level of physical activity was assessed with the Human Activity Profile (HAP) and classified as "inactive," "moderately active," and "active." The physical activity level was compared between groups of subjects (stroke versus healthy-control) and subgroups of the level of exercise ("inactive," "insufficient," and "moderate/vigorous" level of exercise) (α = 5%).

Results: Stroke survivors had a significantly lower level of physical activity (HAP: 51 ± 22 and 71 ± 19 points, respectively). Only for individuals with stroke, a statistically significant difference was found in the levels of physical activity between subgroups of level of exercise, specifically between "inactive" and "moderate/vigorous" subgroups (HAP:47 ± 22 and 70 ± 8 points, respectively).

Conclusions: Physical activity behaved differently between individuals with stroke and healthy-control individuals with the same levels of exercise. Individuals with stroke had worse physical activity levels than matched controls. Furthermore, different from individuals with stroke, in healthy-control individuals with different levels of exercise, the level of physical activity was similar.