Background

Older adults with lower levels of activity can be at risk of poor health outcomes. Wearable technology has improved the acceptability and objectivity of measuring activity for older adults in high-income countries. Nevertheless, the technology is under-utilized in low-to-middle income countries. The aim was to explore feasibility, acceptability and utility of wearable technology to measure walking activity in rural-dwelling, older Tanzanians.

Methods

A total of 65 participants (73.9 ± 11.2 years), 36 non-frail and 29 frail, were assessed. Free-living data were recorded for 7 days with an accelerometer on the lower back. Data were analyzed via an automatic cloud-based pipeline: volume, pattern and variability of walking were extracted. Acceptability questionnaires were completed. T-tests were used for comparison between the groups.

Results

59/65 datasets were analyzed. Questionnaires indicated that 15/65 (23.0%) experienced some therapeutic benefit from the accelerometer, 15/65 (23.0%) expected diagnostic benefit; 16/65 (24.6%) experienced symptoms while wearing the accelerometer (e.g. itching). Frail adults walked significantly less, had less variable walking patterns, and had a greater proportion of shorter walking bouts compared to the non-frail.

Conclusion

This study suggests that important contextual and practical limitations withstanding wearable technology may be feasible for measuring walking activity in older rural-dwelling adults in low-income settings, identifying those with frailty.

中文翻译：

---

使用可穿戴技术监测坦桑尼亚农村居民中老年人的步行活动：一项在脆弱程度研究中嵌套的可行性研究。

背景

活动水平较低的老年人可能会面临健康状况不佳的风险。可穿戴技术提高了高收入国家老年人测量活动的可接受性和客观性。但是，该技术在中低收入国家中并未得到充分利用。目的是探索可穿戴技术的可行性，可接受性和实用性，以测量坦桑尼亚农村居民中老年人的步行活动。

方法

总共评估了65名参与者（73.9±11.2岁），36名脆弱者和29名脆弱者。靠腰部的加速度计记录7天的自由活动数据。数据通过基于云的自动管道进行分析：提取了步行的数量，方式和变异性。可接受性调查表已完成。使用T检验比较两组之间的差异。

结果

分析了59/65个数据集。问卷显示，加速度计有15/65（23.0％）的治疗效果，预期诊断有15/65（23.0％）的效果；16/65（24.6％）的人在佩戴加速度计时出现症状（例如瘙痒）。与非体弱的成年人相比，体弱的成年人的行走明显减少，行走方式的变化较少，较短的回合比例更大。

结论

这项研究表明，在可穿戴技术的支持下，重要的背景和实际限制可能对在低收入环境中测量农村老年人的步行活动进行测量是可行的，从而确定那些脆弱的人。