Preliminary Evaluation of Sedentary Lifestyle in Italian Children after Solid Transplant: What Role Could Physical Activity Play in Health? It Is Time to Move

Abstract

Background: Advances in the medical–surgical field have significantly increased survival after solid organ transplantation in the pediatric population. However, these patients are predisposed to the development of long-term complications (e.g., cardiovascular disease). The therapeutic role of physical activity (PA) to counteract these complications is well known. The purpose of the study was to investigate the level of PA in a pediatric population after solid organ transplantation. Methods: In the first 4 weeks at the beginning of the school year, the Physical Activity Questionnaire for Older Children and Adolescents was administered to young patients who had previously undergone solid transplants at our institute. Results: Questionnaires of 49 patients (57.1% female, mean age 13.2 ± 3.5 years) were analyzed and 32.7% of subjects did not perform any exercise during school physical education classes. Only 24% practiced a moderate quantity of exercise in the previous week (2–3 times/week) and 72% engaged in sedentary behaviors during weekends. Conclusions: Preliminary data confirmed that young recipients are still far from meeting the minimum indications of the World Health Organization on PA and sedentary behavior. It will be necessary to increase their involvement in PA programs in order not only to increase their life expectancy but also to improve their quality of life.

Differences in Physical Activity Levels between Healthy and Transplanted Children: Who Needs More Tips?

“…The study utilized self-reported PAQs questionnaires, which were chosen for their ease of administration and cost-effectiveness. These questionnaires have been widely used in research involving both healthy and transplanted children, demonstrating acceptable psychometric properties [23]. These questionnaires demonstrated an acceptable-to-good internal consistency, test-retest reliability, and sensitivity to detect gender differences [24,29,[37][38][39].…”

“…Lack of sufficient exercise practice is detrimental to the physical, mental health, and quality of life of transplant recipients while there is robust evidence that exercise can work as a medicine for the health not only of transplanted subjects but also for a variety of neurological, psychiatric, cardiometabolic, respiratory and musculoskeletal pathologies [22]. However, current post-transplant approaches are insufficient to fully address the right amount of physical activity for these patients, and physical exercise is not part of the post-transplant long-term therapy protocols [23]. Therefore, the present study aimed to compare the lifestyle of two groups of young patients.…”