title: The Swedish physical activity and fitness cohort born in 1958 - dropout analysis and overview at 36-year follow-up.
abstract: The main aim of the Swedish physical activity and fitness cohort study (SPAF-1958) was to describe physical fitness, physical activity, health, and lifestyle across part of the lifespan, and to assess the influences on these factors from the environment, personal factors, and genetics. There is inevitable dropout from longitudinal studies, and it may be systematic. The aim of this first paper of the second follow-up of SPAF-1958 was to provide a dropout analysis to consider to what extent the participants, at 52 years of age, remain a representative sample of the original adolescent study population. Additional aims were to provide an overview of the study protocol and the ongoing study population. Ongoing study participants in SPAF born in 1958 were, at the second follow-up at the age of 52, still representative of the study cohort in terms of sex, adolescent geographical area, upper secondary school program, adolescent body composition, muscular strength, and muscular endurance. However, a higher physical activity and, among women, a higher aerobic capacity in adolescence decreased the risk for dropout. It is important when interpreting results from longitudinal studies to adjust for the systematic dropout that could bias the conclusions drawn from the results.
authors.affiliation: Department of Community Medicine and Rehabilitation, Umeå University, Umeå, Sweden.
authors.forename: U
authors.initials: U
authors.lastname: Aasa
authors.affiliation: Department of Community Medicine and Rehabilitation, Umeå University, Umeå, Sweden.
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Lundell
authors.affiliation: Department of Community Medicine and Rehabilitation, Umeå University, Umeå, Sweden.
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Barnekow-Bergkvist
authors.affiliation: Department of Laboratory Medicine, Clinical Physiology Karolinska Institutet, and Unit of Clinical Physiology, Karolinska University Hospital, SE-141 86 Stockholm, Sweden.
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Jansson
authors.affiliation: Department of Laboratory Medicine, Clinical Physiology Karolinska Institutet, and Unit of Clinical Physiology, Karolinska University Hospital, SE-141 86 Stockholm, Sweden.
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Westerståhl
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D001290:Attitude; D001827:Body Height; D015992:Body Mass Index; D001835:Body Weight; D015331:Cohort Studies; D004522:Educational Status; D015444:Exercise; D005080:Exercise Test; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D018737:Hand Strength; D006304:Health Status; D006801:Humans; D008019:Life Style; D016015:Logistic Models; D008137:Longitudinal Studies; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D053580:Muscle Strength; D010352:Patient Dropouts; D010806:Physical Education and Training; D010809:Physical Fitness; D012907:Smoking / Q000453:epidemiology; D013548:Sweden / Q000453:epidemiology; D055815:Young Adult
keywords: Longitudinal study; Sweden; dropout analysis; middle age; participation; physical capacity; questionnaire