title: Reduced customary activity in chronic heart failure: assessment with a new shoe-mounted pedometer.
abstract: Although many methods exist to assess the degree of incapacity of patients with chronic heart failure during normal daily activities, all have their limitations. In this study we describe a new shoe-mounted pedometer and compare it with body worn pedometers in normal volunteers and in patients with chronic heart failure. Ten young normal healthy volunteers participated in a comparison of the new shoe-mounted device with body born pedometers and counting a direct footfall. Seventeen patients with chronic heart failure and 10 aged-matched healthy elderly subjects participated in a comparison of both pedometers over 7 days. In the young volunteers the shoe-mounted pedometers were more accurate than the body-borne devices. With both pedometers the patients with chronic heart failure had a reduced level of activity compared with the normal volunteers over the 1 week period (P = 0.01). In both the patients and volunteers the shoe-mounted device recorded a higher score than the body borne pedometers (P < 0.01). The electronic shoe mounted pedometers are a more accurate way of assessing customary activity. In patients with chronic heart failure customary activity is substantially reduced compared with fit healthy elderly subjects.
authors.affiliation: Department of Medical Physics, University Hospital, Nottingham, UK.
authors.forename: D J
authors.initials: DJ
authors.lastname: Hoodless
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Stainer
authors.forename: N
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Savic
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Batin
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Hawkins
authors.forename: A J
authors.initials: AJ
authors.lastname: Cowley
mesh_terms: D000203:Activities of Daily Living; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D002908:Chronic Disease; D006333:Heart Failure / Q000503:physiopathology*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008722:Methods; D008875:Middle Aged; D012775:Shoes; D016138:Walking