Validation of the self-report EXERNET questionnaire for measuring physical activity and sedentary behavior in elderly

This study aims to examine the validity and reliability of the Elderly EXERNET Physical Activity Questionnaire (EEPAQ) in a sample of Spanish elderly population. A sample of 73 elderly successfully completed the EEPAQ and wore an accelerometer over 7 consecutive days. Test-retest reliability of the EEPAQ was assessed by having the participants answer the EEPAQ twice within 14 days. Criterion validity was assessed for the questionnaire against the accelerometer, as the gold standard. Results indicated that EEPAQ had adequate reliability measured by Intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC) (walking ICC=0.88; sitting ICC=0.68; household activities ICC=0.97), and good validity against the accelerometer. Walking had a significant (p<0.05) correlation with countsmin^-1 (r=0.56) and moderate to vigorous physical activity (MVPA) (r=0.51), as well as a negative significant (p<0.01) correlation with sedentary minutes (r=-0.33). Sitting time was positively correlated (r=0.57; p<0.01) with sedentary time and negatively correlated with the countsmin^-1 and MVPA. EEPAQ seems to be a valid and reliable tool to measure physical activity (PA) in a population of elderly living in Spain.