Caracterização do nível de atividade física de pessoas com esquizofrenia com recurso à acelerómetria: relação com a qualidade de vida

Abstract

Schizophrenia is a serious mental illness, that can result from the interaction between several factors. People with schizophrenia tend to have a more sedentary lifestyle, expressed by their physical inactivity. Several studies demonstrate the benefits of physical activity upon quality of life of people with schizophrenia. According to the World Health Organization, the recommendations for the practice of physical activity, in order to obtain general improvements in health, are in the order of 30 minutes of moderate physical activity, 5 times a week. The first objective of the present study aimed to characterize the level of PA of a group of people with Schizophrenia who participate in a program of structured physical activity, using objective measurements. The second objective is to analyze the association between physical activity levels, quality of life, sociodemographic, anthropometric and clinical variables. The measurement of the level of physical activity was obtained through data collected with an accelerometer. Quality of life was assessed using the Portuguese version of the World Health Organization Quality of Life -Bref questionnaire (WHOQOL-Bref). The gender distribution of our sample of 20 people with schizophrenia, included 14 male and 6 of female participants. Our results suggest that, although it is difficulty to maintain the practice of moderate to vigorous physical activity, the sample displays high values of physical activity. Compared to previous studies, in terms of quality of life, the sample shows higher values for various domains. There is also a relationship between smoking habits and the number of hospitalizations, as well as the quality of life of people with schizophrenia. Considering the results altogether, it can then be concluded that the focus of attention should not only be on the implementation of programs for physical activity, but also the establishment of healthier life habits, since both factors are related to each other, and influence the quality of life.