IPAQ-L and CPET usefulness in a north-eastern Romanian population undergoing cardiac rehabilitation

Abstract

(1) Background: Current guidelines emphasize the importance of regular moderate and/or high intensity aerobic exercises in cardiovascular disease prevention. Our study aimed to evaluate the utility of the International Physical Activity Questionnaire Long Form (IPAQ-L) for its physical activity (PA) quantification in patients with heart failure with reduced ejection fraction. (2) Methods: We conducted a cross-sectional study of 110 patients aged between 34 and 69 years admitted to the Cardiovascular Rehabilitation Clinic. All patients underwent a clinical examination, blood tests, a cycle ergometer exercise stress test and individual assessment of their weekly PA level using the IPAQ-L. (3) Results: Obesity, hypertension and type 2 diabetes were highly prevalent in our study group but did not influence the IPAQ-L results. In terms of physical performance, moderate intensity was the most common level of intensity found in our study group. Regarding the data on the relationship between the IPAQ-L questionnaire and cardiopulmonary exercise testing (CPET) parameters, vigorous PA was correlated with predicted maximal oxygen uptake (p = 0.025) and moderate PA, in addition to walking, were correlated with heart rate reserve (p = 0.005 and p = 0.009, respectively). (4) Conclusions: IPAQ-L can be used for the evaluation of individual PA levels within a cardiovascular rehabilitation program, but cannot substitute for the importance and utility of CPET.