Prevalence of physical activity counseling in primary care: A systematic review and meta-analysis

Background: This systematic review aimed to summarize and evaluate the prevalence of physical activity (PA) counseling in primary care. Methods: Five databases (CINAHL Complete, Embase, Medline, PsycInfo, and Web of Science) were searched. Primary epidemiological studies on PA counseling in primary care were included. The Joanna Briggs Institute critical appraisal checklist for studies reporting prevalence data was used to assess the quality of studies. The review protocol was registered with PROSPERO (CRD42021284570). Results: After duplicate removal, 4990 articles were screened, and 120 full-text articles were then assessed. Forty studies were included, with quality assessment scores ranging from 5/9 to 9/9. The pooled prevalence of PA counseling based on 35 studies (199830 participants) was 37.9% (95% CI 31.2 to 44.6). The subgroup analyses showed that the prevalence of PA counseling was 33.1% (95% CI: 22.6 to 43.7) in females (10 studies), 32.1% (95% CI: 22.6 to 41.7) in males (10 studies), 65.5% (95% CI: 5.70 to 74.1) in people with diabetes mellitus (6 studies), 41.6% (95% CI: 34.9 to 48.3) in people with hypertension (5 studies), and 56.8% (95% CI: 31.7 to 82.0) in people with overweight or obesity (5 studies). All meta-analyses showed high levels of heterogeneity (I2=93% to 100%). Conclusion: The overall prevalence of PA counseling in primary care was low. The high levels of heterogeneity suggest variability in the perspectives and practices of PA counseling in primary care. PA counseling should be standardized to ensure its optimum effectiveness in primary care

Physical Activity with Sports Scientist (PASS) programme to promote physical activity among patients with non-communicable diseases: a pragmatic randomised controlled trial protocol.

Physical activity (PA) effectively prevents and treats non-communicable diseases in clinical settings. PA promotion needs to be more consistent, especially in busy primary care. Sports scientists have the potential to support PA promotion in primary care. The Physical Activity with Sports Scientist (PASS) programme is created to personalise PA promotion led by a sports scientist in a primary care clinic. A pragmatic randomised controlled trial with two parallel groups will be conducted at a family medicine clinic. Physically inactive participants aged 35-70 years who have type 2 diabetes mellitus, hypertension or dyslipidaemia will be invited. The control group (n=60) will receive usual care. The intervention group (n=60) will receive the PASS programme and usual care. The PASS programme will consist of a tailored PA prescription after the physician's consultation at the first visit and monthly phone follow-ups. The primary outcome is the proportion of participants who have achieved the PA goal defined as aerobic activity (≥150 min/week of moderate to vigorous-intensity PA), muscle-strengthening activity (≥2 days/week of moderate or greater intensity) and multicomponent PA (≥2 days/week of moderate or greater intensity). Secondary outcomes are body composition and physical fitness. The primary and secondary outcomes will be measured and compared between the control and intervention groups at visit 1 (month 0: baseline measurements), visit 2 (months 3-4: follow-up measurements), visit 3 (months 6-8: end-point measurements) and visit 4 (months 9-12: continuing measurements). The study protocol was registered with the Thai Clinical Trials Registry. Trial registration number: TCTR20240314001. [Abstract copyright: © Author(s) (or their employer(s)) 2024. Re-use permitted under CC BY-NC. No commercial re-use. See rights and permissions. Published by BMJ.

University Students’ Overall and Domain-Specific Physical Activity During COVID-19: A Cross-Sectional Study in Seven ASEAN Countries

This research investigated the overall and domain-specific physical activity (PA) of university students in the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. A cross-sectional study was applied to socioeconomic (SE) and PA online data collected from 15,366 students across 17 universities in seven Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) countries. Statistical analyses using logistic regressions established SE–PA relationships. Over half (60.3%) of ASEAN university students met age-span specific PA guidelines. Students participated in recreational PA the most, followed by study-related activities and 44.1% of students engaged in \u3e8 hrs/day of sedentary time (ST). Compared to students with a normal body mass index (BMI), students who were underweight (UW), overweight (OW), and obese (OB) respectively, had a 14% (UW odds ratio (OR) = 1.14, p = 0.005), 25% (OW OR = 1.25, p \u3c 0.001), and 24% (OB OR = 1.24, p = 0.005) greater probability of meeting PA guidelines. Those who engaged in active transport and belonged to a sports club (SC) had 42% (SC OR = 0.58, p \u3c 0.001, for both) less probability of meeting the PA guidelines, compared with those who travelled inactively and did not belong to a sports club, respectively. Students who participated in 4–6 sport or exercise activities had ten times more likelihood of meeting PA guidelines (OR = 10.15, p \u3c 0.001), compared with those who did not play any sport or do any exercise. Students who spent \u3e8 hrs/day of ST had 32% (ST OR = 0.68, p \u3c 0.001) less probability of meeting PA guidelines, compared with those who spent \u3c3 hrs of ST. These data showed that over half of ASEAN university students achieved PA guidelines and were highly sedentary during the COVID-19 pandemic. Recreational and study-related activities were important for students to maintain sufficient PA and should be actively promoted within the restrictions imposed during periods of the COVID-19 pandemic lockdowns

The Clusters of Health-Risk Behaviours and Mental Wellbeing and Their Sociodemographic Correlates: A Study of 15,366 ASEAN University Students

Background This study investigated, through cluster analysis, the associations between behavioural characteristics, mental wellbeing, demographic characteristics, and health among university students in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) University Network – Health Promotion Network (AUN-HPN) member universities. Methods Data were retrieved from a cross-sectional self-administered online survey among undergraduate students in seven ASEAN countries. A two-step cluster analysis was employed, with cluster labels based on the predominant characteristics identified within the clusters. The ‘healthy’ cluster was assigned as the reference group for comparisons using multinomial logistic regression analysis. Results The analytic sample size comprised 15,366 university students. Five clusters of student-types were identified: (i) ‘Healthy’ (n = 1957; 12.7%); (ii) ‘High sugary beverage consumption’ (n = 8482; 55.2%); (iii) ‘Poor mental wellbeing’ (n = 2009; 13.1%); (iv) ‘Smoker’ (n = 1364; 8.9%); and (v) ‘Alcohol drinker’ (n = 1554; 10.1%). Being female (OR 1.28, 95%CI 1.14, 1.45) and being physically inactive (OR 1.20, 95%CI 1.04, 1.39) increased the odds of belonging to the ‘High sugary beverage consumption’ cluster. Being female (OR 1.21, 95%CI 1.04, 1.41), non-membership in a sports club (OR 1.83, 95%CI 1.43, 2.34) were associated with ‘Poor mental wellbeing’. Obesity (OR 2.03, 95%CI 1.47, 2.80), inactively commuting to campus (OR 1.34, 95%CI 1.09, 1.66), and living in high-rise accommodation (OR 2.94, 95%CI 1.07, 8.07) were associated with membership in the ‘Smoker’ cluster. Students living in The Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam had a higher likelihood of being alcohol drinkers, compared with those who lived in Brunei. Conclusions ASEAN university students exhibited health-risk behaviours that typically clustered around a specific health behaviour and mental wellbeing. The results provided support for focusing interventions on one dominant health-risk behaviour, with associated health-risk behaviours within clusters being potential mediators for consideration

Prevalence of Health-Risk Behaviors and Mental Well-Being of ASEAN University Students in COVID-19 Pandemic

The prevalence of epidemiological health-risk behaviors and mental well-being in the COVID-19 pandemic, stratified by sociodemographic factors in Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) university students, were examined in the research. Data were collected in March–June 2021 via an online survey from 15,366 university students from 17 universities in seven ASEAN countries. Analyzed data comprised results on physical activity, health-related behaviors, mental well-being, and sociodemographic information. A large proportion of university students consumed sugar-sweetened beverages (82.0%; 95%CI: 81.4, 82.6) and snacks/fast food daily (65.2%; 95%CI: 64.4, 66.0). About half (52.2%; 95%CI: 51.4, 53.0) consumed less than the recommended daily amounts of fruit/vegetable and had high salt intake (54%; 95%CI: 53.3, 54.8). Physical inactivity was estimated at 39.7% (95%CI: 38.9, 40.5). A minority (16.7%; 95%CI: 16.1, 17.3) had low mental well-being, smoked (8.9%; 95%CI: 8.4, 9.3), and drank alcohol (13.4%; 95%CI: 12.8, 13.9). Country and body mass index had a significant correlation with many health-risk behaviors and mental well-being. The research provided important baseline data for guidance and for the monitoring of health outcomes among ASEAN university students and concludes that healthy diet, physical activity, and mental well-being should be key priority health areas for promotion among university students

Iatrogenic Chronic Abdominal Pain in a Geriatric Patient: A Case Report

Chronic abdominal pain is a challenging problem in clinical practice, with several pathophysiological mechanisms underlying its aetiologies. This case report presents a geriatric patient with multiple comorbidities who had experienced intermittent abdominal pain for over 10 years. Alarming symptoms were ruled out, and a functional gastrointestinal disorder was determined as the most likely cause. The patient’s medical history and previous treatments were thoroughly reviewed, revealing that long-term use of metformin and an oral iron supplement was the iatrogenic symptom triggers. The abdominal pain resolved upon discontinuation of these two medications. This case report highlights the significance of reviewing iatrogenic causes and periodically assessing chronic medical conditions to identify potential contributing factors of chronic abdominal pain

Replication Data for: Pokemon GO and physical activity

Preliminary study: Pokemon GO and physical activity among a group of university student