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Physical Activity Questionnaire for Children: Validity and Cut-Points to Identify Sufficient Levels of Moderate- to
João Antônio Chula de Castro1, Luiz Rodrigo Augustemak de Lima2, Richard Larouche3
1Graduate Program of Physical Education, Sports Center, Federal University of Santa Catarina, Florianopolis, SC,Brazil.
Purpose:
To investigate the validity of the Physical Activity Questionnaire for Older Children (PAQ-C) to assess the moderate- to vigorous-intensity physical activity (MVPA) level of children and adolescents diagnosed with HIV and propose cut-points, with accelerometer measures as the reference method.
Method:
Children and adolescents, aged 8-14 years (mean age = 12.21 y, SD = 2.09), diagnosed with HIV by vertical transmission, participated in the study. MVPA was investigated through the PAQ-C and triaxial accelerometer (ActiGraph GT3X+). Receiver operating characteristic curve and sensitivity and specificity values were used to identify a cut-point for PAQ-C to distinguish participants meeting MVPA guidelines.
Results:
Fifty-six children and adolescents participated in the study. Among those, 16 met MVPA guidelines. The PAQ-C score was significantly related to accelerometry-derived MVPA (ρ = .506, P < .001). The PAQ-C score cut-point of 2.151 (sensitivity = 0.625, specificity = 0.875) was able to discriminate between those who met MVPA guidelines and those that did not (area under the curve = 0.751, 95% confidence interval, 0.616-0.886).
Conclusion:
The PAQ-C was useful to investigate MVPA among children and adolescents diagnosed with HIV and to identify those who meet MVPA guidelines.
