[Internet-based "e-training" as exercise intervention for health promotion: results from 2 intervention studies]

Area of Science:

• Rehabilitation Medicine
• Health Promotion
• Digital Health

Background:

• Internet-based interventions offer sustainable solutions for rehabilitation and exercise therapy.
• These digital tools can function independently or complement traditional face-to-face methods.
• Two studies evaluated e-training programs in health promotion settings, assessing varied delivery formats.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the efficacy of internet-based training (e-Training) compared to traditional face-to-face interventions.
• To assess the impact of e-Training on muscular fitness, sports activities, and quality of life.
• To examine changes in psychosocial factors and endurance capacity in a back pain intervention program.

Main Methods:

• Study 1: Randomized controlled trial with 90 sedentary adults comparing group fitness, supervised training, and e-Training over 3 months with a 4-month maintenance phase.
• Study 2: Pre-post design with 509 adults at risk for recurrent back pain, evaluating a 6-month combined face-to-face and e-Training program.
• Outcome measures included muscular fitness, sports activities, health-related quality of life (HRQL), psychosocial variables (e.g., FABQ-D), and cardiorespiratory endurance.

Main Results:

• Both studies showed significant improvements across most variables in all intervention groups over time.
• Study 1 indicated comparable efficacy between e-Training and face-to-face interventions, with a notable gender difference in HRQL improvements for women.
• Study 2 demonstrated significant improvements in psychosocial risk factors for back pain chronification and endurance capacity in men, though causality could not be established due to study design limitations.

Conclusions:

• Internet-based interventions, including e-Training, are effective for health promotion and rehabilitation, demonstrating comparable results to traditional methods.
• E-training presents a viable and sustainable option for improving physical fitness, quality of life, and managing chronic conditions like back pain.
• Further research with robust designs is needed to establish causal links and explore specific population benefits, particularly gender-specific outcomes.