Patient Preference and Adherence (Aug 2023)
An Age-Stratified Cross-Sectional Study of Physical Activity and Exercise Adherence of Stroke Survivors in Rural Regions
Abstract
Beilei Lin,1,2 Lihong Xue,1 Baoxia An,1 Zhenxiang Zhang,2 Weihong Zhang2 1Nursing Department, Henan Huaxian People Hospital, Anyang City, Henan Province, People’s Republic of China; 2Nursing and Health School, Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou City, Henan Province, People’s Republic of ChinaCorrespondence: Zhenxiang Zhang; Weihong Zhang, Nursing and Health school, Zhengzhou University, No 100 Science Avenue, Zhengzhou City, People’s Republic of China, Email [email protected]; [email protected]: To describe the Physical Activity and Exercise (PAE) adherence of stroke survivors in rural regions, additionally, to analyze the influential factors through age stratification.Methods: This is a cross-sectional study. Totally, 596 stroke patients (65.70± 10.76 years) from three rural regions were selected, PAE scale was used for measuring compliance. The influential factors among different age groups were explored separately. This study adheres to the EQUATOR checklist, SROBE.Results: Only 17.8% (106) of participants regularly participated in PAE. Altogether, 42.45% were classified as a young-middle age group, and the rest 57.55% were in the old age group. Positive attitudes and better PAE-relevant knowledge were protective factors for adherence in the young and middle-aged group (OR=0.683; 95% CI 0.173~0.588 and OR=0.939; 95% CI 0.013~0.114), as well as in the old group (OR=0.704; 95% CI 0.193~0.534 and OR=0.929; 95% CI 0.035~0.118); having no home rehabilitation equipment was a strong risk factor for younger patients (OR=16.078; 95% CI 1.235~4.320); however, without hemiplegia can positively affect their adherence (OR=0.891; 95% CI 0.045~0.229). In addition, the presence of a spouse can lead to a better compliance among old patients (OR=0.436; 95% CI − 0.496~-0.165).Conclusion: It is necessary to improve the knowledge of physical activity in rural stroke patients of all ages. It is of great significance to install home rehabilitation equipment to promote exercise for young and middle-aged stroke patients. While for the old stroke patients, we strongly suggest focusing on the role of spouses, which would be more useful in low-income regions.Keywords: stroke, physical activity, exercise, adherence, rural area, influential factors
