Minimal clinically important difference in physical activity in patients with stroke

Background Estimates of the minimal clinically important difference (MCID) for stroke-related outcomes are needed, but the MCID for physical activity is unknown. Objective To provide an anchor-based estimate of the MCID for physical activity in patients with stroke. Methods This study included 31 patients with stroke admitted to a hospital and discharged home. Physical activity, including the daily number of steps and metabolic equivalents (METs), was evaluated shortly after informed consent was obtained following admission (baseline) and discharge using an Active-style Pro HJA-750C with a triaxial accelerometer. We calculated the number of steps and time rate (%) of sedentary behavior (SB), light-intensity physical activity (LPA), and moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA) per day. After discharge, the physical therapist rated each participant’s perceived amount of physical activity recovery on the Global Rating of Change scale (GRC). The mean change in each physical activity data point from baseline to after discharge in the group of participants who answered “a little better, meaningful” in the GRC was considered the MCID. Results Eighteen participants were included in the analysis. Participants’ physical function improved from baseline to at discharge during hospitalization, although mild motor paralysis persisted. MCID values for the step activity, SB, LPA, and MVPA were 1828 steps, -11.2%, 6.9%, 4.3% per day, respectively. Conclusion For researchers and clinicians, this study’s MCIDs provide a benchmark for interpreting changes in the effects of intervention studies, and specific guidelines for interventions in clinical practice. Further research with larger sample sizes is required to confirm these findings.