Gender differences in habitual activity in children with cystic fibrosis

Abstract

Aims: (1) To compare habitual activity levels in prepubescent and pubescent boys and girls with different degrees of CF lung disease severity and healthy controls. (2) To assess the relation between habitual activity levels and measures of fitness, lung function, nutrition, pancreatic status, and quality of life. Methods and Results: A total of 148 children (75 girls and 73 boys) with CF and matched controls were studied. Regardless of disease severity, there were no differences in habitual activity between prepubescent boys and girls with CF. Pubescent boys with CF were significantly more active than girls with the same degree of disease severity. There were no significant differences in habitual activity between prepubescent children with CF and controls. Pubescent children with mild CF were significantly more active than controls, but those with moderate to severe disease were less active than controls. The best correlates with habitual activity levels were anaerobic power, aerobic capacity, and quality of life. In children with moderate to severe disease, nutrition status correlated significantly with activity levels. The impact of pancreatic status on activity levels and other measures of fitness was most apparent in pubescent girls. Conclusion: Gender differences in habitual activity were evident only after the onset of puberty. The impact of pancreatic insufficiency on measures of fitness and habitual activity was greatest in pubescent females. The reason for this gender difference may be an interplay of genetic, hormonal, and societal factors and is the focus of a longitudinal study.

Associations of psychosocial factors with health outcomes among youth with cystic fibrosis

“…11,23,24 In a qualitative study of youth with CF, Willis et al 16 reported that girls who did not adhere to treatment were more likely to experience guilt compared to boys. This self-reflection about guilt is consistent with adolescent girls' greater private selfconsciousness, 17 which may be associated with more treatment discouragement, lower self-esteem 11,25 and poorer mental health reported for girls.…”

Airway clearance techniques used by people with cystic fibrosis in the UK

“…Given that the sex difference in habitual activities among people with CF is well described [33], this result suggests that patient preference also exerts a significant influence on the choice of airway clearance technique. In addition, people with CF who do not use any primary airway clearance technique had high % predicted FEV 1 (median 78%) and low total IV antibiotic-days (median 0), suggesting that these people may have felt well and therefore chose not to perform airway clearance.…”

Clinical Exercise Testing in Children and Adolescents with Cystic Fibrosis

“…It has been established, that aerobic and anaerobic capacity is reduced in most patients with CF when compared to their healthy counterparts, with impaired respiratory function and malnutrition being likely contributing factors (7)(8)(9)(10). It has also been documented that children with CF with higher activity levels have a better aerobic and anaerobic fitness and nutritional status, and a significantly lower disease severity (11). Moreover, higher aerobic fitness is associated with a higher health-related quality of life (11;12).…”

“…After a 12-week follow-up period, most outcome parameters decreased compared to pretraining levels, except of anaerobic performance and quality of life (13). Moreover, CF children with higher levels of habitual activity have been found to possess increased anaerobic power during the WAnT and quality of life (11). More research is required in this field, in particular using training studies, to provide more detailed recommendations for exercise programs.…”