What Motivates Patients with COPD to Be Physically Active? A Cross-Sectional Study

Area of Science:

• Pulmonary Medicine
• Behavioral Science
• Exercise Physiology

Background:

• Low motivation significantly reduces physical activity (PA) in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD).
• Pulmonary rehabilitation (PR) aims to improve PA, but individual motivational factors remain underexplored.
• Understanding patient motives is crucial for tailoring PA interventions in COPD management.

Purpose of the Study:

• To assess physical activity motives in COPD patients across different pulmonary rehabilitation (PR) participation groups.
• To investigate the relationship between physical activity motives, PA levels, and clinical characteristics in COPD patients.
• To identify motivational factors that can inform personalized PA promotion strategies.

Main Methods:

• Ninety-two COPD patients were categorized into Never PR, Previous PR, and Current PR groups.
• Physical activity motives were measured using the Exercise Motivation Inventory-2 (EMI-2).
• Physical activity was objectively assessed via accelerometry, and clinical data (symptoms, disease impact, exercise capacity, comorbidities) were collected.

Main Results:

• Health/fitness-related motivational dimensions scored highest across all participants.
• No significant differences in motives were found between PA groups (<5000 vs. ≥5000 steps/day).
• Fewer symptoms correlated with higher psychological/health motives, while ≥two comorbidities linked to greater body-related motives.

Conclusions:

• Physical activity motives in COPD patients are primarily driven by health and fitness, irrespective of PR history.
• Identifying specific patient symptoms and comorbidity profiles can help tailor motivational strategies for PA.
• Personalized exploration of patient motives is recommended for effective PA promotion in COPD management.