Direct monitoring of physical activity in critical care
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Direct monitoring of physical activity in critical care: feasibility, tolerability and validity of the activPAL accelerometer.
IRAS ID
169787
Contact name
Catherine Snelson
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
University Hospital Birmingham NHS Foundation Trust
Duration of Study in the UK
0 years, 3 months, 0 days
Research summary
Many patients after an illness in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) are left feeling very weak and struggle to get their strength back. Patients lose muscle mass whilst they are on a breathing machine, which causes muscle weakness. Survivors of critical illness can still be weak many months or even years after hospital discharge which significantly affects quality of life.
We know that patients who receive physiotherapy whilst on the ICU are more mobile and are discharged sooner from the ICU and from hospital. However, it has been difficult to accurately record activity levels within the ICU in order to determine how much and what type of physiotherapy is of most benefit to patients. This research aims to check that the equipment we have to measure activity works well on patients recovering from critical illness.
We want to use a device that records step count, standing, sitting and lying time. This device is called the ActivPAL accelerometer. It is a small device (5cm x 3.5 cm x 0.7cm) that can be attached with standard dressings to the thigh. It is light (20g) and has proven to be very useful in recording activity levels in patients recovering from other illnesses, but has not been used within the ICU before. We will compare the recordings made by the activPAL monitor over a 24 hour period to video recordings of physiotherapy sessions in 20 patients on the ICU. We aim to assess whether use of the activPAL monitor is feasible within the ICU, well tolerated by patients, and accurately records activity undertaken
REC name
West Midlands - South Birmingham Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
15/WM/0016
Date of REC Opinion
24 Feb 2015
REC opinion
Further Information Favourable Opinion